Bus UK Pontypridd UDC and the Borough Council of Taff-Ely

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About Bus UK Pontypridd UDC and the Borough Council of Taff-Ely

A pictorial record of the vehicles operated in and around Pontypridd by the local government authority of the day.


Horse trams were running in the Rhondda from 1882 and at a later unrecorded date the UDC bought and electrified the line within its boundary. It is known that the date for the Pontypridd to Trehafod section was 1908 and that services were run in conjunction with Rhondda Electric Tramways, part of the BET empire; although through running did not happen until 1919 on the route to Porth. Presumably passengers had to change trams at Trehafod prior to that. Maybe a local historian can be a bit more precise.

In 1930 trolleybuses were introduced on the Treforest to Cilfynedd route and buses replaced trams on the Porth route the following year. The UDC contribution to the joint bus service into the Rhondda being Bristols.

The first trolleybuses were English Electrics with Karriers replacing them after WW2 when the original vehicles moved south to Cardiff for further service there. A variety of trolleybuses from a number of other operators was loaned during the war as the demands of industry meant the UDC had to transport thousands of extra workers each day.Bristol buses continued to be a popular choice until 1950 when they became unavailable outside the nationalised bus companies. When Bristols again became available in the 1970s Pontypridd did not return to them, unlike several of its neighbours. Guy was a favoured supplier for many years after initial experience with wartime models and AEC as the alternative source until the Leyland National became the standard in the later 1970s.

After local authority reorganisation in 1974 Pontypridd UDC was subsumed, along with its assets, into the new Borough Council of Taff-Ely.

Fleet livery has been several shades of blue relieved by cream with, for many people, the navy blue period being the best.