02/02/2026
Speedyâs Update â Why the Bus Wasnât on the Pitch Today?
Some of you noticed that the bus wasnât on its pitch today, so I wanted to explain whatâs been happening and why.
Speedyâs has been trading in Chandlerâs Ford for 14 years.
Things were fine and dandy until COVID hit. We were forced to close for six months, and when we returned, the industrial estate had completely changed. We battled on and kept going as best we could.
By the end of 2024, our old singleâdecker bus had to retire because parts were no longer available.
So in November 2024, I rolled the dice and bought a doubleâdecker. After converting it, we started trading in December, hoping the peak traffic would help steady the ship for the new year.
January 2025 turned out to be the worst start to a year in 13 years.
The bus broke down, costing a lot of money.
Then the company Iâd rented a generator from for 11 years suddenly increased the price by 300% â from ÂŁ131 a month to ÂŁ424. That alone put huge pressure on the business and left me constantly chasing bills, hoping things would pick up.
The rest of 2025 didnât improve.
Turnover was down 50%, while bills were up 25%.
I considered raising prices, but I knew customers were already on tight budgets â just like me â so I held off, hoping the peak season would help. Instead, the bus played up again, forcing me to consider taking it off the road for repairs.
January 2026 has carried on the same way.
To give you an idea:
Speedyâs needs to earn ÂŁ1,500 a week just to cover bills, overheads, and wages.
Bookers alone was ÂŁ700âÂŁ800 a week â up 25% on 2024/2025.
But throughout 2025, the bus averaged ÂŁ1,000âÂŁ1,300 a week, and January 2026 has only been ÂŁ1,000 a week.
It became clear something had to change.
So I made the difficult decision to stop trading for now.
This gives us time to repair the bus properly â electrics, checks, and other issues â without rushing. I also returned the generator because it was simply costing too much.
On top of all this, my health has taken a hit over the last two years.
The pressure, sleepless nights, and constantly robbing Peter to pay Paul have taken their toll. I even risked my home to keep Speedyâs going as long as I could.
Iâve also realised I canât keep doing 60âhour weeks with longâstanding health issues that are getting harder to manage.
So right now, the future of Speedyâs is up in the air.
The Plan Moving Forward
Iâm aiming to save enough money to:
- Get the bus repaired properly
- Buy a secondâhand Stephill generator, which would save around ÂŁ5,000 a year
If I can manage that â while also stabilising things at home â the plan is to bring the bus back to the pitch with Shay running it on his own, and me supporting from the background.
That was always the longâterm plan; weâre just moving it forward a bit sooner.
Can People Help in anyway?
Some of you have asked if thereâs any way to support us.
The simple answer is YES â you can donate using the QR code.
Thank you to everyone who has supported Speedyâs over the years.
This isnât the end â just a pause while we regroup, repair, and hopefully return stronger with a new Captain Shay at the helm.
Cheers! Speedy (Lee)
https://checkout.revolut.com/pay/12d99f3c-51ea-410e-be33-c87f5eec23e3
