RAY  CUFF

Michael Wadman recalls the thirty years service to the people of North Dorset, and the end of an era

Of two eras, actually. At Yeovil bus station on Saturday 31st August 2002 at a little after the booked 17:30, GCL 349N duly departed for Sturminster Newton on Ray Cuff's last journey as an operator, marking the end of thirty years' service to the people of north Dorset and bits of Somerset, and also the end of regular use of the Bristol RE on bus services in the south-west.

Ray’s operations had their origins in a service operated by Somervale Coaches from Glastonbury to Blandford Forum which was introduced on 7th March 1966 as a replacement for the Somerset & Dorset Railway and withdrawn on 5th February 1972 when the subsidy from the British Railways Board was discontinued. Ray drove on this service and upon its withdrawal he purchased two of the Tiger Cubs used on it (KDB696 and JBO124) and commenced his own operation which was oriented towards providing shopping links for communities in the area rather than as a replacement for the trains.

Services commenced on 7th February 1972 as follows:

4    STURMINSTER NEWTON - Stalbridge - Henstridge - Templecombe - Wincanton - Bruton - Milton Clevedon (Tu) / Southwood (TuF) - Evercreech - Shepton Mallet - (some journeys via North Wootton) - GLASTONBURY  TuF

5    STURMINSTER NEWTON - Stalbridge - Henstridge - TEMPLECOMBE  M

6    STURMINSTER NEWTON - Stalbridge - Henstridge - Buckhorn Weston - Kington Magna - West Stour - East Stour - GILLINGHAM  W

7    LYDLINCH - Sturminster Newton - Fifehead Neville - Kingston - Hazelbury Bryan - Kings Stag - Pulham - Holwell - Stourton Caundle - Bishops Caundle - Sherborne - YEOVIL  S

13    GILLINGHAM - East Stour - West Stour - Fifehead Magdalan - Stalbridge - Stourton Caundle - Bishops Caundle - Sherborne - YEOVIL  S

From early 1973 Ray’s services were marketed as part of the Chris Knubley’s Brutonian network, using a common route numbering system. A connection at Gillingham with Brutonian service 12 provided a facility to Shaftesbury off service 6, and a similar connection provided a facility from Shaftesbury and Motcombe into service 13. On Tuesdays, service 4 provided a connection at Evercreech (outward) or Bruton (return) into Service 8 to Salisbury.

3/73    Service 7 withdrawn between Lydlinch and Sturminster Newton.

3/7/73    Service 4 diversion via North Wootton withdrawn.

11/74    Service 13 diverted away from Fifehead Magdalen via Lower Marsh. In addition the two main journeys diverted between West Stour and Lower Marsh via Kington Magna.

?/76     Service 7 double run to Fifehead Neville withdrawn.

5/78    Service 4 Tu diversion via Milton Clevedon withdrawn. All journeys now via Southwood.

4/4/81    The arrangement with Brutonian having been discontinued, the following changes were made:

New service 1    OKEFORD FITZPAINE - Shillingstone - Child Okeford - Manston - Rixon - Sturminster Newton - Lydlinch - Stourton Caundle - Bishops Caundle - Sherborne - YEOVIL  F; also one Yeovil - Sturminster Newton journey at 12:00 S

Service 4 withdrawn. Section between Bruton and Glastonbury passed to Smiths of Pylle.

Service 5 renumbered 4.

Service 7 extended from Sturminster Newton to Rixon, increased to TuS, and renumbered 3.

Service 13 renumbered 2.

2/83    Service 1 withdrawn between Okeford Fitzpaine and Shillingstone.

22/10/86 Ray had initially registered all his services for D-Day, but the registration for the 6 was withdrawn, apparently because Tony Tucker (Air Camelot) registered a service from Buckhorn Weston and Kington Magna to Wincanton, and so this service ceased at D-Day. 

22/12/86  New Service 6  GILLINGHAM - East Stour - Todber - Marnhull - Hinton St Mary - STURMINSTER NEWTON  M NSD replacing a Bere Regis & District service (BR&D continued to operate on schooldays).

11/11/87  Service 4 (previously service 5): The “live” journeys to & from Sturminster Newton diverted between Stalbridge and Sturminster Newton via Stourton Caundle on M SDO only. Also a W SDO service introduced STURMINSTER NEWTON - Stourton Caundle - STALBRIDGE.

4/88    Dorset County Council for the first time showed their internal route numbers allocated to independents’ services in a public timetable book, and Ray immediately adopted their numbers:

Service 1 Friday service renumbered 241.

Service 2 (previously service 13) renumbered 242.

Service 3 (previously service 7) and the S journey on service 1 renumbered 243.

Service 4 (previously service 5) renumbered 244.

FLEET HISTORY

With a peak vehicle requirement of 1 and (usually) a total fleet strength of 1, short-term hirings were not uncommon, and these have not been included. Three relatively long-term loans have been included.

    KDB 696    Leyland PSUC1/1T    575806    Weymann    M7861        B44F
        New 1957 to North West Road Car. Ex-Somervale, Midsomer Norton 2/72.
        Withdrawn 9/76. Sold by 7/77

    JBO 124    Leyland PSUC1/1    543552    Weymann    M6544        B44F
        New 1954 to Western Welsh.
        Ex-Somervale, Midsomer Norton 2/72. Acquired for spares only.
       Passed to Brutonian as immobile store 10/73

    AOR 379C    Bedford VAL14    1639        Plaxton    652517    C52F
        New 1965 to Glider & Blue, Bishops Waltham
        Ex-James, Sherston 1/76. Withdrawn 12/80

    URO 928F    Bedford VAL70    7862123    Plaxton    688544    C52F
        New 1968 to Alexandra, Enfield .
        On loan ex-Barrys, Weymouth 12/80 - 2/81

    NUF 438G    Bristol RELL6G    3-598        Marshall    B4186        B53F
        New 1969 to Southdown.  Acquired 2/81. Sold 4/87

    NCN 813L    Bristol RELH6G    4-576        Plaxton    733879    C47F
        New 1973 to Northern General . Acquired 11/83
        To C49F by 5/87. Sold 2/90

    SJB 113M    Bristol RELH6G    4-677        Plaxton    7411BXR513    C49F
        New 1974 to Alder Valley . Ex-Barrys, Weymouth  2/90.
       Withdrawn by 6/96. Remains gone by 11/97

    GCL 349N    Bristol RELH6L (6LX)   4-750    ECW        21426        DP49F
        New 1974 to Eastern Counties . Ex-Coombs, Weston-Super-Mare by 4/96
        Withdrawn 6/97. Reinstated 9/00. Withdrawn 8/02. Sold for preservation 5/03.

    GCL 348N    Bristol RELH6L (6LX)   4-747    ECW        21423        DP49F
        New 1974 to Eastern Counties . Ex-Village Tours, Garston  6/97.
        Withdrawn 11/98. Sold to Styles Farm (shed) by 8/99.

    SAH 851M    Bristol RELH6G    4-724        Plaxton    7411BXR510    C53F
        New 1974 to Eastern Counties . Ex-Hembry, Hazelbury Bryan  11/98
        withdrawn 3/00. Sold for preservation 6/01.

    YDC 24Y    Dennis Falcon         SDA409/132    Wadham Stringer  9487/83    B50F
        New 1983 to Hartlepool. Ex-Eaglen, Morton  1/00.
       Withdrawn by 9/00. Sold to Styles Farm (shed).

    LHT 171L    Bristol RELL6L    RELL-3-1911    ECW        20146        B50F
        New 1973 to Bristol OC . On loan ex-Simon Jennings 5/00 - by 8/00.

    YAZ 6393    AEC Reliance        6U2R38768    Plaxton    8011AC006/S    C53F
        New 1980 to Traject, Huddersfield  (FCX 576W)
        On loan ex-Shaftesbury & District  9/01 - 11/01

The two former Eastern Counties RELHs were built with Leyland engines but were fitted with Gardner 6LXs by Eastern Counties. The Dennis Falcon was purchased mainly because it had a Gardner engine but despite considerable effort and expense it could never be persuaded to run properly – the climb out of Yeovil on the A30 was painfully slow – and eventually was given up on. Fortunately the sale of GCL 349N had fallen through and it was still available, so it was reinstated for further use and lasted to the end of services in August 2002.

WHAT HAPPENED NEXT

At first little obvious change was apparent to the unknowing passenger. Ray continued to drive “his” services, but as an employee of Linco Travel and using Linco vehicles. The double run from Bishops Caundle to Stourton Caundle was withdrawn from the Saturday 243, and TuF journeys into Yeovil extended to the ASDA store on request. Ray did his best to discourage such requests.

Mr Cudlipp gradually reduced his operations over the next few years – the 244 which had had taken over from Ray in November 1998 was withdrawn in December 2003 – and retired in March 2004. He sold what was left of his business to Mr Cargill t/a Frontera Travel, although by then the only bus services that he operated were the 241, 242, and 243. Frontera continued to operate these until the middle of August when they suddenly ceased without notice; for which Frontera subsequently lost their operating licence.

Dorset County Council arranged replacement services, but they didn’t start until November. Shaftesbury & District ran service 42 which followed the route of the 242 but confusingly on Tuesdays instead of Saturdays. Damory Coaches ran the 241 temporarily for a month to assess demand, and then diverted their existing 190 Blandford – Yeovil Friday service over the route of the 241 instead of the main roads it had used previously. South West Coaches took over the 42 from Shaftesbury & District in April 2008.

An aside - with Ray himself most often the driver, holidays could present a problem  -  Geoff Toomer of Stanbridge and Crichel

remembers driving the routes in the summer of 1985 to cover Ray's week away on holiday!