Western Welsh
| Company type | Private (formerly), Nationalised (from 1967) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public transport |
| Predecessor | South Wales Commercial Motors |
| Founded | 1920 |
| Fate | Merged with Red & White Services in 1978 to form National Welsh Omnibus Services |
| Headquarters | Cardiff , Wales, United Kingdom |
Area served | South Wales, northern West Country (including southern Gloucestershire and northern Somerset) |
| Products | Bus services |
| Owner | British Electric Traction (from 1931), Transport Holding Company (from 1967), National Bus Company (from 1969) |
Western Welsh was a bus company headquartered in Cardiff, operating services across South Wales and the northern areas of the West Country. Established in 1920 by a family involved in brewing under the name South Wales Commercial Motors, the company grew by acquiring other operators, eventually covering routes from St David's and Tenby in Pembrokeshire through to Brecon via the South Wales Valleys. In 1927, a deal with the Great Western Railway (GWR) resulted in GWR transferring its bus operations in South Wales as well as parts of southern Gloucestershire and northern Somerset to the firm. GWR took a minority shareholding, and the business was renamed Western Welsh.
In 1931, GWR divested its shares to British Electric Traction (BET), which pursued further expansion of Western Welsh through additional acquisitions. The company's fleet was predominantly composed of vehicles from AEC and Leyland, including models such as the AEC Bridgemaster and Albion Nimbus, all finished in the firm's characteristic solid red color scheme.
After BET sold its bus operations to the government in 1967, Western Welsh was nationalised under the Transport Holding Company. Beginning in 1969, it functioned as part of the National Bus Company. In 1970, NBC reassigned Western Welsh’s routes west of Bridgend to its subsidiaries, South Wales Transport and Crosville Motor Services. The eastern routes remained under Western Welsh until 1978, when it merged with Red & White Services, forming National Welsh Omnibus Services. National Welsh underwent privatisation in 1987 but ultimately ceased operations in 1992.