May 2026

Although, now 50 years since the central enamelled metal sign first appeared on Dartmoor, this specimen appeared in the Trust archive as part of a donation to the Trust in 2026.

The donor explains that “The Dartmoor sign was a bus stop for use on the Moor, particularly in sensitive areas. Dartmoor Bus Services were developed from 1975 with a view to reducing car traffic onto the Moor, and facilitating one-way walks by those already there. In this it had limited success, but they did enable public transport access onto the moor which was valuable for non-car owners.”

Staff in the Devon County Council transport co-ordination section worked on the project with officers from the National Park Authority, which provided the bulk of the funding. The services started in 1975 and were expanded subsequently and the operators at that time were Western National/Devon General and Plymouth City Transport with full size buses, and A P Jack of Widecombe with Ford Transit minibuses. The signs were first used in 1976.

Delving into the Trust’s leaflet and timetable book collection reveals a range of material relating for Dartmoor services from 1975 right through to the 2000s. The examples here show the early ‘Dartmoor Bus Services’ branding and vehicle types. The 1980 timetable, with its cheerful bus icon, is redolent of the Country Bus imagery adopted today as “The local bus company with a friendly face”. The Summer 2003 timetable features former Western National FLF 2019 which operated a heritage 118 service from Okehampton to Dartmoor via Gunnislake from 1995 to 2007. Now firmly in preservation 2019 is a regular participant at the Trust’s vintage bus days in Devon and Cornwall.

Bringing the story up to date, commencing 26th May 2026, Country Bus are operating Service 271, the Haytor Hoppa from Newton Abbot to Widecombe via Bovey Tracey (Thursdays and Saturdays only, through to 19th September). From 20th July a service 171 will run across Dartmoor from Newton Abbot to Tavistock through the summer (Monday to Saturday).

The concept of buses reducing car travel to the moor and opportunities for point to point walks continue 50 years since the Dartmoor Bus Service sign first appeared.

Ref. E00346
Archive Item of the Month, May 2026