Poole Takes the Hump

One of Poole’s earliest bus services is to see a return to tradition – almost.

After all the fuss when first Wilts & Dorset gave up the 168/9 tendered service and Yellow Buses took it on, only to ditch it seven months later, Poole Borough Council is looking to bus service newcomer Roadliner for help.

From 1 April 2006, the 168/9 is being replaced by hourly route 8. That’s not all. Recognising that passengers are likely to see the upheaval of three operators in such a short period, Poole is undertaking a little innovative marketing.

It’s reintroducing the “Rossmore Flyer” name, synonymous with the route operated for many years by The Rossmore Bus Company, the only independent operator in a town otherwise dominated by the then Hants & Dorset. The Flyer passed first to Cosy Coaches and then Stanbridge & Crichel, before passing to W&D in 1993 as 168/9. Today’s route 8’s much different but it does cover the old one of Rossmore Road & Trinidad Estate. The former service settled to a 20-minute round trip, operated every 20 minutes, and vanished on Wednesday afternoons.

What a pity, though, that Poole hasn’t used the other name by which the Rossmore Flyer was known: the Monkey’s Hump & Heavenly Bottom Express. And if you don’t believe that this was ever used, check out the back of an old Hants & Dorset bus timetable. There’s much more on this at http://www.countrybus.co.uk/rossmorebus.htm, which we recommend.