X is for Xelabus

Saturday 4th November 2023

The newest of my fortnightly AtoZ of bus and train companies, Xelabus was only formed as recently as November 2010 by Gareth Blair. Based in Eastleigh on an adjacent unit to Bluestar on the Barton Park Industrial Estate, I recall an enjoyable visit there back in 2019 as part of the Omnibus Society’s Annual General Meeting and President’s Programme (see above photo from that visit).

The company expanded rapidly in its first decade specialising in shopper buses and school services as well as a small network of local bus services based on Eastleigh which stretched as far as Bishop’s Waltham and Petersfield at one time. It also built up a burgeoning private hire coach fleet offering day trips as well as group travel.

However, since the pandemic, during which it ceased operations for a period, the company seems to have scaled back some of its local bus operations, most recently in July passing route X4 (Velmore – Eastleigh – Hedge End) over to Bluestar and in September route X21 from Southampton to the Science Park, via Airport Parkway, became UnilLink U8 following the ending of the contract for the former.

It now only operates one main bus route in Southampton, the Mondays to Fridays hourly route X11 (branded on the online timetable as Hospitallink) between the city centre and Lordshill operating between 09:00 and 15:00, together with route X12 (branded as Bitterne Hoppa) providing four return journeys between the city centre and Shirley on Tuesdays and Thursdays and a small one-bus network of Hoppa branded local routes numbered X1,X2 and X3 serving the Sainsbury’s in Bitterne on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Other than those its website gives details of school journeys it runs for a whole host of schools across the area which looks now to be its main emphasis.

I took a ride on the X11 and X12 on a recent trip to Southampton and the buses looked smart in their green livery – reminiscent of the old Hants & Dorset colours from long ago – although one bus operating on the X11 was in fact in a blue livery for the King Edward VI School.

The X11 and X12 are complementary routes to the main Southampton bus network now dominated by Bluestar so it wasn’t surprising they weren’t particularly busy, although numbers travelling were very respectable for the nature of the services.

The drivers I encountered were friendly and the operation had all the hallmarks of a family owned bus company where the owners take pride in their operation and know what they’re doing as long experienced bus people.

Xelabus began operating in the Bournemouth area last summer following the demise of Yellow Buses after taking over the Yellow Coaches operation and temporarily operating three contracts for the local authority (routes 18, 33 and 36) on an emergency tender but this wasn’t renewed in February when the tender ended. The company also took over Seaview Services of Sandown in May last year. Both purchases were made by Xelagroup, the parent company to Xelabus.

And the name Xelabus? It’s the name of Gareth’s son Alex (spelt backwards with bus added) who tragically died from a rare form of childhood cancer in 2009. The family-owned company was established the following year in 2010 and provided Gareth with a change of career and new purpose in life after that personal trauma and tragedy. His first job had been in a Ford dealership and he had gone on to work at PB Bus Marketing, the business father Philip had set up after leaving the municipal bus sector. Phil became chairman and Gareth managing director of Xelabus.

Both have done the memory of son/grandson Alex proud with Xelabus.

Roger French

Previous AtoZ blogs: Avanti West Coast, Blackpool Transport, Chiltern Railways, Delaine Buses, Ensignbus, Faresaver, Grand Central, Hull Trains, Ipswich Buses, JMB Travel, Kirkby Lonsdale Coach Hire, Lynx, Isle of Man Transport Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Nottingham City Transport, (London) Overground, Preston Bus, Reading Buses, Southern Vectis, trentbarton, unō, Volks Railway, Whippet.

Blogging timetable: 06:00 TThS and a bonus Book Review blog coming tomorrow, Su.

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