My father was a driver for Red & White Services from the mid-1930s until he retired in 1977 and as a boy in the 1950s I was fascinated by the curious fleet numbering system the Company employed for their vehicles. The Ian Allan ABC books were very popular with railway enthusiasts at that time but no similar publications were available for Red & White until the South Wales ABC appeared in 1963. The P.S.V. Circle produced a fleet history for the post-war years of the Company in 1982, and a detailed fleet history for the early years until 1945 was published in 2018. The fleet lists here have been amended to include the new information contained in this latest publication. Other sources used in compiling this history are listed in the References section.
Chepstow Bus Station circa 1963 with 1950 Leyland Tiger HWO 325 in the foreground and rebodied 1944 Guy Arab double decker EWO 756 behind. Parked at the rear is a 1962 Bristol MW coach 28 FAX. Ben the Argus seller, a familiar figure around Chepstow at that time, is seen leaning against the destination pole in front of the double decker.  HWO 325, demoted to bus duties in 1959, was often used on the Sudbrook service on which I travelled home from school - luxury compared to the crowded double deckers on the Newport route.     (Richard Smith Collection)
Chepstow Depot drivers posing in front of ex-Swan Motors Daimler DWN 2 which came to Red & White in 1947 and was transferred to United Welsh in 1951 thus dating the photograph to between 1947 and 1951. The following drivers have been identified: Back Row: Bert Blatchley, Roy Mayo, Tom Morris, Mervyn Cooke Front Row:    ?    , Norman Jones, Bert Hancock, Cliff Jenkins,   ?    , Fred Smith, Percy Sweetland Can anyone put names to the other two faces?
© Richard Smith 2012-19. All rights reserved.
Bus Fleets of the Red & White Group
My father was a driver for Red & White Services from the mid- 1930s until he retired in 1977 and as a boy in the 1950s I was fascinated by the curious fleet numbering system the Company employed for their vehicles. The Ian Allan ABC books were very popular with railway enthusiasts at that time but no similar publications were available for Red & White until the South Wales ABC appeared in 1963. The P.S.V. Circle produced a fleet history for the post-war years of the Company in 1982, and a detailed fleet history for the early years until 1945 was published in 2018. The fleet lists here have been amended to include the new information contained in this latest publication. Other sources used in compiling this history are listed in the References section.
Chepstow Bus Station circa 1963 with 1950 Leyland Tiger HWO 325 in the foreground and rebodied 1944 Guy Arab double decker EWO 756 behind. Parked at the rear is a 1962 Bristol MW coach 28 FAX. Ben the Argus seller, a familiar figure around Chepstow at that time, is seen leaning against the destination pole in front of the double decker.  HWO 325, demoted to bus duties in 1959, was often used on the Sudbrook service on which I travelled home from school - luxury compared to the crowded double deckers on the Newport route.     (Richard Smith Collection)
Chepstow Depot drivers posing in front of ex-Swan Motors Daimler DWN 2 which came to Red & White in 1947 and was transferred to United Welsh in 1951 thus dating the photograph to between 1947 and 1951. The following drivers have been identified: Back Row: Bert Blatchley, Roy Mayo, Tom Morris, Mervyn Cooke Front Row:    ?    , Norman Jones, Bert Hancock, Cliff Jenkins,   ?    , Fred Smith, Percy Sweetland Can anyone put names to the other two faces?
© Richard Smith 2012-19. All rights reserved.
Bus Fleets of the Red & White Group