Ticket To Ride

More than 7,000 passengers enjoyed free rides on the 20 buses and coaches, including the open-toppers, as the wet weather proved little deterrent to the enthusiasts.

The town centre St Martin's car park became a bus station for the day, and as well as being the start point for trips to destinations such as Arundel, Angmering, East Preston and along the seafront, the site had around 30 other passenger vehicles on display.

Trevor Hockham, who leads the event's small group of organisers, said numbers attending were slightly down this year, but it was as successful as ever in terms of the enjoyment and enthusiasm both of the spectators and exhibitors.

"Considering we were up against the weather, the men's Wimbledon final and the British Grand Prix, we did very well.

"We have once again succeeded in the three goals we set ourselves bringing people into Littlehampton; providing a good show for all ages; raising money for good causes."

Last year the day's organisers made a 1,000 donation to the Littlehampton Army Cadets' Band and the cadets helped out as marshals again for long hours at the event.

Although the organisers' takings for souvenir programmes and commemorative model buses were affected, a donation of around 1,000 can still be made to the Littlehampton 307 Bus Group, which is aiming to restore a 1966 former Southdown double-decker for use by the community.

The bus was on view at Sunday's event, where other vehicles dated back to the 1930s, and there was a large group of familiar red London buses, while a range of trade stands sold all manner of bus and transport memorabilia.

At the newer end of the spectrum, an articulated 60-ft long "bendy bus" from Southampton was taking out around 150 passengers at a time on its 20-minute tours around the town, and, bang up-to-date, a Manchester bus displayed the destination "Commonwealth Games 2002".

And there were plenty of admiring looks for the event's Baby Bus II, a sister for the popular miniature Southdown double-decker taking children round the car park.

Both the little buses and the ex-Southdown 307 will be out and about again on Saturday at Littlehampton Carnival, collecting money for carnival funds.