 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(August 2018) |
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 Optare Solo in Penzance in 2017 | |
| Parent | First South West |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Camborne |
| Service area | Mid and West Cornwall |
| Service type | Bus services |
| Website | cornwallbykernow.co.uk |
Kernow [1] (formerly known as First Kernow) is a bus company operating services in Cornwall, England. It is part of First South West, a subsidiary of FirstGroup.
Kernow is a division of First South West, which was formed from two previous operators: Western National (in Cornwall and South Devon) and Red Bus (in North Devon).
First purchased Truronian coaches in 2008, which now forms part of Kernow. [2] [3]
It was announced on 6 January 2020 that Cornwall Council had awarded the entire tendered bus network in the county, except the Truro park & ride service, to the Go-Ahead Group from 1 April. It is operated under their Go Cornwall Bus brand. The contract consists of 73 routes, which made up roughly half of the First Kernow network at the start of 2020. First retain their commercially operated routes and the Truro park & ride contract. [4]
Kernow routes mainly cover central and west Cornwall, west of an imaginary line connecting Camelford, Bodmin and Fowey, although two services continue along the north coast from Camelford as far as Bude.
Kernow operates the Park for Truro service in Truro on behalf of Cornwall Council, [5] as well as services intended primarily for university students between Truro, Redruth and Falmouth University campuses in Falmouth and Penryn (using route numbers prefixed U).
During the summer months, Kernow operates open top buses. In 2017, the service was relaunched under the Atlantic Coaster brand with Plaxton President bodied Dennis Trident 2s drafted in to replace the Alexander bodied Volvo Citybuses. [6] In 2022 First Kernow operated four 'Coaster' branded open top bus routes in Cornwall: the Land's End Coaster (Penzance - Marazion - St Ives - Land’s End - Penzance Circular); the Tin Coaster (Penzance - Lower Boscawell); the Atlantic Coaster (Newquay - Padstow); and the Falmouth Coaster (Falmouth Circular).
Most Kernow routes are interurban or rural in character, but there are local town services in some of the larger urban areas – Falmouth, Newquay, Penzance and St Austell, as well as the Park & Ride service in Truro.
Kernow took over some of Western Greyhound's routes following that company's sudden closure in March 2015, which meant that First returned in force to Newquay and neighbouring settlements (including Padstow, Perranporth and Wadebridge), where nearly all services had been operated by Western Greyhound for some years. Western Greyhound had also possessed some services in the Penzance and St Austell areas, most of which were also transferred to Kernow.
Many rural routes where lost when the Transport for Cornwall contract was given to Plymouth Citybus by Cornwall Council in March 2020. [7] The only bus routes still operated by First Kernow are the U/T/L prefixed routes, "Coaster" branded services, "Sunseeker" S1/S2 routes, The "Mousehole" branded service between Penzance, Newlyn & Mousehole and the unbranded 17, 19, 24, 27, and 91. These are operated on a commercial basis. All of the Truro College routes and some school buses are run as well. In May 2021, Kernow started the Cornwall Daytripper brand based around the Eden Project, added a Falmouth Coaster and Discover Exeter operated with open toppers and Dartmoor Explorer with B7TLs.[ citation needed ]
The principal maintenance depot is at Camborne with a second in the Newquay area at Summercourt, which was acquired from Western Greyhound after that company had ceased to trade. The depots at Penzance and Truro also carry out some vehicle checks and minor maintenance.
First Kernow had an older fleet of buses, virtually all of which had been cascaded from other FirstGroup fleets. They included Plaxton Presidents on Volvo B7TL and Dennis Trident 2 chassis, Plaxton Pointer on Dennis Dart chassis, Optare Solos and Mercedes-Benz Citaros from Western Greyhound. [8] Several closed top Volvo B7TL Plaxton Presidents were converted to part open top for 'Atlantic Coaster' routes for the 2017 summer season.[ citation needed ]
First Kernow received 30 new Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMCs in late 2016/early 2017 for use on its U1/U2 (blue livery) routes and the Tinner T1/T2 routes (red livery). [9] A further 21 Enviro400 MMCs and 20 Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMCs [10] and 14 Optare Solo SRs were purchased in December 2018.[ citation needed ]
In 2023 Mercedes Sprinters were introduced replacing aging optare Solos on the mousehole route with an increased frequency.[ citation needed ]
Most services use green buses or those in First Group corporate pastel colours. Certain branded routes have dedicated liveries:
| Colour | Route prefix | Routes | Image |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green | n/a | Routes without branding |  |
| Teal | n/a | 'Atlantic Coaster' serving Newquay and Padstow, 'Lands End Coaster' serving Lands End, Penzance and St Ives, 'Falmouth Coaster' serving Pendennis Castle and Swanpool and 'Tin Coaster' serving Penzance, St Just and Pendeen |  |
| Red | T | 'Tinner' - between Truro, Camborne and Penzance or St Ives | |
| Red | U | 'Copper' - between Redruth and Falmouth | |
| Blue | U | University services serving the Penryn and Falmouth campuses |  |
| Green | L | The Lizard livery serves the Lizard area, covering Helston, Mullion, Kuggar, Gunwalloe, Hayle, St Ives and Redruth. |  |
| Green front and White rear | College Contract | The Cornwall College Group livery, Branding changes depending on the college. (Duchy College, Falmouth Marine School, Bicton College and Cornwall College variants) |  |
Saint Austell is a town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, 10 miles (16 km) south of Bodmin and 30 miles (48 km) west of the border with Devon.
The South Western Football League was an English association football league composed of clubs from Cornwall and west and north Devon. It consisted of a single division at the eleventh overall tier of the English football league system, the seventh and lowest "Step" of the official National League System. The East Cornwall League and Cornwall Combination ranked below the South Western on the overall pyramid, and in turn have feeder leagues of their own.
The Atlantic Coast Line is a 20+3⁄4-mile (33 km) Network Rail branch line which includes a community railway service in Cornwall, England. The line runs from the English Channel at Par, to the Atlantic Ocean at Newquay.
Dick Cole is a Cornish politician, currently serving as an elected member of Cornwall Council and the leader of the Cornish devolutionist political party, Mebyon Kernow, a role he has held since 1997. He is currently one of the longest serving political leaders in Britain. Dick Cole was first elected MK leader in 1997. He lives in Fraddon, a village in Mid-Cornwall.
First Hampshire & Dorset is a bus operator providing services in the counties of Hampshire and Dorset. It is a subsidiary of FirstGroup.
First South West is a bus company operating services in the English counties of Somerset and Cornwall. It is a subsidiary of FirstGroup.
The Cornwall County Football Association, also known as the Cornwall FA, is the governing body of football in Cornwall. Formed in 1889, it is responsible for the administration, control, promotion and development of football at all levels throughout the county.
Arriva Guildford & West Surrey Limited, which traded as Arriva Guildford & West Surrey, was a bus operator based in Guildford, England. It was a subsidiary of Arriva. The company operated services in West Sussex and Surrey, as part of the Arriva Southern Counties division. Services that were run were primarily centred on hubs at Guildford, Woking and Cranleigh.
The Cornish Main Line is a railway line in Cornwall and Devon in the United Kingdom. It runs from Penzance to Plymouth, crossing from Cornwall into Devon over the famous Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash.
Southdown PSV Limited, which traded as Southdown Buses, was a medium-sized country bus operator, with 18 routes across East Surrey, West Sussex, South London and Kent, 9 of which were school bus routes. Most of their routes were operated on behalf of Surrey County Council, other work included railway replacement services for planned engineering work.
The Great Western Railway road motor services operated from 1903 to 1933 by the Great Western Railway, both as a feeder to their train services, and as a cheaper alternative to building new railways in rural areas. They were the first successful bus services operated by a British railway company.
The evolution of transport in Cornwall has been shaped by the county's strong maritime, mining and industrial traditions and much of the transport infrastructure reflects this heritage.
Western Greyhound was a bus operator based in Summercourt, near Newquay, which operated services in Cornwall and Devon from January 1998 until March 2015.
Summercourt is a village in mid Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is in the civil parish of St Enoder five miles (8 km) southeast of Newquay. The village is centred on the crossroads at OS Grid Ref SW887561 of the old course of the A30 road and the A3058 Newquay to St Austell road.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Cornwall: Cornwall – ceremonial county and unitary authority area of England within the United Kingdom. Cornwall is a peninsula bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall is also a royal duchy of the United Kingdom. It has an estimated population of half a million and it has its own distinctive history and culture.
Presented below is an alphabetical index of articles related to Cornwall:
The Jurassic Coaster is a bus service operated by the Weymouth branch of First Hampshire & Dorset, running around the Jurassic coastline of the county of Dorset. It features five routes, stretching from Axminster in the west to Poole in the east, with one of the routes in TripAdvisor's 2018 poll of most scenic bus routes coming in 12th place.
Media related to First Kernow at Wikimedia Commons
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