When Southdown Motor Services Acquired the business and assets of the Brighton Hove & District Omnibus Co. Ltd (1st January 1969), it took on a fleet that was entirely Bristol/ECW in composition. The oldest dated from 1951 – a Bristol KS5G and the newest a Bristol Lodekka FS6B from 1965.
Most of the Lodekkas were carrying rear platform bodies – they were suited to busy town services – with a smaller number of FSF6Bs with folding doors located at the front. As the seafront was popular with holidaymakers there were a number of convertible open-toppers too.
They didn’t move far from the Brighton area and the BH&D fleet was to change quite quickly in the first few years after the merger.
The changeover years….