The Big Bus March 2026!!
On Saturday 12th September, the Back Our Buses 'Big Bus March' took place! And what an event it was. Thank you to all who came our in force, to support us, to walk with us, to cheer us on, and to greet us in Eastleigh.
We all met outside the Community Centre in Colden Common, around 10am. A great crowd was gathered, some people has come to cheer us on our way, even if they could not do the march, which was lovely to see and really upped the spirits!
From younger children waving some excellent signs, to a gentleman in hi-vis on his mobility scooter, it showed the variety of bus users the axing of this serviced has affected.
The village minibus was parked up, ready to take those who were not able to do the walk, but wanted to be part of the trip to Eastleigh to raise awareness of how important a bus service is to them.
Everyone gathered was chatting about why it is so vital to keep the conversation alive about the 61, why they were taking part, and some were actually taking part on behalf of others, who could not do the walk, which was so thoughtful and kind!
Eve from the Hampshire Chronicle took some fabulous photos of the whole group which you can see one of above! She was exceptionally quick at getting her article up which we can only more than thank her for, as it really got people talking! You can find a link to this article on our Press page.
Then we set off on our walk/march/hike/cycle/dog walk - depending on who you ask! Richard our minibus driver waited at the Community Centre until around 11am, when he left with a bus full of jolly but passionately protesting passengers, picking up a few extras on the way!
We want to say a huge huge thank you to both Richard for being our chauffeur on the day, and Marion from B.O.B and the Friendship Group for arranging the loan of the minibus for the morning.
It made a great difference to those involved to be able to be part of the march and get out and make their voices heard with us all.
The route took us from the Community Centre in Colden Common, along through Brambridge, down Highbridge Road, under Allbrook bridge, up the hill (slowly but steadily!), along Twyford Road, to the Lidl/M&S roundabout (shown above), through the Bus Station and round to the meeting point at the Bandstand.
From age 4 to 91, a fantastic effort was made by all.
We had a brilliant response from drivers passing us, beeping their horns, people waving, and passengers taking time to read our banners as well. We even had a bus driver beep and wave!
Pedestrians were also cheering us on, and asking questions about what we were up to, which was great.
We received a lot of good feedback from those who stopped us, some coming out from their houses on the route, saying thank you to us.
Many took their time to explain that they felt it was a wonderful idea to keep raising awareness of how this route is needed.
Quite a few of those we met gave us testimonials for the website, joined the mailing list, and giving their opinions.
We absolutely loved seeing everyone's fabulous banners and signs that they made for the walk. What a wonderful effort everyone put in!
And it was well worth it, because it made people take notice that we were campaigning and what we were campaigning for. See some of these below...
Special shout outs go to our youngest campaigner, Miss B-M, who walked the whole way and still had enough energy to run around the park!
Also to Lindsay and Dom who walked/wheeled the whole length of the Colden Common section pushing the wheelchair up and down the hills and not losing pace with the group!
And to good friends Jill, 91, and Marion, 87, who got our minibus from Colden Common and Allbrook to meet at the bandstand in Eastleigh to show how much this means to them!
We also cannot forget our four-legged mascot who walked and wagged his tail all the way!
Walking through the Bus Station, people were cheering us on, and stopping us to ask questions and talk about their experiences.
When we arrived at the band stand in Eastleigh we were greeted with some lovely local residents who live along the route, who we not able to walk the whole way, but are so very behind this campaign!! They had got the minibus we put on from Colden Common/Allbrook to make sure their voices were heard too.
Theirs are some of the most important.
This is one of their fabulous banners that they were waving.
This is our fantastic Flora on her bike, with a fabulous 'wearable' banner complete with moving bus wheels!!
She highlighted the most important reasons the bus is needed and the areas it is needed in.
Flora was excellent in keeping track of all our walkers along the route and making sure everyone was safe.
It was fantastic to see everyone out together and the response on the day was excellent. Interesting two weeks later, Hampshire County Council held a drop in at the same place we had gathered with our banners - for feedback on bus services.. a coincidence???..
We were overwhelmed by the support of everyone (Ted above included!) and it really has spurred us on even more to try and get a resolution in place!! Well done all!
Watch this space!!
But in the meantime, keep asking....
Good work everyone!
I often think that ‘save our bus’ campaigns focus on those who need the bus because they have little choice, and rightly so, but forget that buses are for All. They’re not just for ‘the pensioners’ and ‘the school children’ who rightly tend to be a key focus for missing routes, but they’re also for the car owners who want to have break from driving for the day, to work or sleep on the way to work, to get into town when the car is being repaired*, to take the grandchildren out for a ride, and that’s even before considering all the environmental and social reasons why buses are better. Please remember that buses are for everyone!