Isle of Wight Bus & Coach Museum facts for kids

The Isle of Wight Bus Museum opened its doors in 1997. You can find it on the beautiful Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom. This special museum is a charity, and it's run completely by amazing volunteers.

Today, all the old buses and coaches are kept at a former bus garage in Ryde, Isle of Wight. The museum also holds two fun bus events each year. One is in May, called a "running day," where you can see buses in action. The other is in October, and it brings in many cool buses from all over the country!

Discovering Old Buses and Coaches

Bristol VR Previously run by Southern Vectis 628 SDL638J St James Square, Newport.

The Isle of Wight Bus Museum has a fantastic collection of old buses and coaches. They have 21 vehicles on display at their home in Ryde. These vehicles show how public transport has changed over many years.

Some of the cool vehicles you might see include:

• A Bristol K5G from 1947, which is very old!
• A Bristol MW6G from 1958.
• A Bedford SB from 1964.
• A Bristol FLF6G from 1965.
• A Leyland Leopard from 1982.
• A Dennis Dart from 1990.
• A Volvo B10B from 1993.
• An AEC Matador from 1945, which is even older than some of the buses!
• A Daimler CK from 1927.
• Even a Cheverton Stage Coach from way back in 1880!

Many of these vehicles are owned by the museum itself. Some are on loan, and a few are privately owned but displayed at the museum.

The Museum's New Home

The bus museum's previous site at Newport Quay

For a while, the museum was located at Newport Quay. But by the end of 2010, the museum needed to find a new home. Their old building was going to be taken down as part of a big building project in Newport.

The museum wanted to build a brand new, bigger place to keep their buses. They looked at a piece of land near Havenstreet Railway. This new spot would have been twice as big as their old one! However, finding enough money and getting permission to build there was tricky.

Luckily, since 2015, the museum has been happily settled in a former bus depot. This new home is on Park Road in Ryde, Isle of Wight. It's a great place to keep and show off their amazing collection of buses and coaches.

Photo gallery

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  Buses lined up on the quay during the "Ex Island Buses" only running day during May 2010.

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  An ex Southern Vectis Bedford OB 216 (FDL676) at the Southern Vectis Bustival 2011. This bus is part of the bus museum collection.

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  This is 301 a Bristol RELH with Duple Commander Bodywork.This bus is part of the bus museum collection.