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| Parent | ComfortDelGro |
|---|---|
| Founded | April 12, 2024 |
| Commenced operation | 5 January 2025 |
| Headquarters | Hyde Road, Manchester |
| Locale | Greater Manchester |
| Service type | Bee Network bus services |
| Routes | 232 |
| Depots | 4 |
| Fleet | 420 [1] |
| Fuel type | Diesel and electric |
| Chief executive | Patrick Sibley |
| Website | www |
Metroline Manchester is a bus operator in Greater Manchester, England. It is a subsidiary of ComfortDelGro, operating franchised Bee Network bus services under contract to Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM).
Metroline was founded in April 1989 as a business unit of London Regional Transport ahead of the privatisation of London bus services, being sold in October 1994 in a management buyout worth £20 million (equivalent to £50,246,000in 2023). [2] The operator was later sold to Singapore-based multi-national transport group ComfortDelGro for £73.8 million (equivalent to £156,899,000in 2023) in February 2000. [3]
Metroline took early interest in Transport for Greater Manchester's franchised Bee Network bus services, recruiting former Arriva Yorkshire regional manager Patrick Sibley in September 2022 to help in its bidding for Tranches 2 and 3 of franchises. With no pre-existing presence in Greater Manchester, the operator aimed to secure large franchise contracts from TfGM so it would inherit depot facilities from existing operators; winning smaller contracts would have resulted in Metroline having to establish new depot facilities within the region. [4]
Initially, Metroline was unsuccessful in bidding for Tranches 1 and 2 of Bee Network contracts, which went to existing operators in the area. In March 2024, however, it was announced that Metroline had won four of five Tranche 3 contracts, taking on bus services in the south side of the City of Manchester operated from Ashton, Hyde Road, Sharston and Wythenshawe depots for a five year period, with options to extend the contract for a further two years. Metroline Manchester commenced operations on Bee Network services on 5 January 2025, with Patrick Sibley taking on the position of Managing Director for the new operator. [5] [6]
Metroline Manchester operates buses from four depots across Greater Manchester, with a total of 1,350 driving staff required. A majority of staff from existing operators are able to transfer employment to Metroline Manchester through a TUPE transfer. [1]
Ashton bus depot was taken over from Stagecoach Manchester to operate services in Tameside. Located in an industrial estate off Clarence Street, the depot was established by Stagecoach in 2008 to replace a former Mayne Coaches bus depot located on Ashton New Road. [7]
Hyde Road bus depot is the head office and largest depot of Metroline Manchester following the commencement of operations, having been taken over from Stagecoach Manchester. [4] The depot was originally opened by Manchester Corporation Tramways in 1902, being considerably redeveloped during the 1920s ahead of the running of trolleybuses and motorbuses from the late 1930s respectively. Hyde Road was redeveloped again during the 1960s, with parts of the old tram sheds demolished and a new entrance and frontage being constructed along Hyde Road itself.[ citation needed ]
Sharston bus depot was taken over from Stagecoach Manchester, with a fleet of 32 BYD Alexander Dennis Enviro400EVs coming with this depot. [4] This depot is located within the Sharston Industrial Estate, capable of holding over 200 buses and equipped with rainwater recycling systems and motion-activated lighting to minimise environmental impact, and was opened by Stagecoach in 2010 to replace the former GM Buses Princess Road depot in Moss Side. [8]
Wythenshawe depot was taken over from Arriva North West, with no vehicles coming with this transfer. Located on the Southmoor Industrial Estate, it is planned for Metroline to operate this depot using solely diesel-powered vehicles. Prior to the commencement of franchised services, Metroline used this depot to operate a fleet of Wright Eclipse Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TLs on driver training duties. [1]
As of October 2024, Metroline Manchester are set to operate a fleet of 420 buses upon the commencement of operations on 5 January 2025. [1] The company's operating license was provisionally approved to allow a fleet of over 500 buses to be potentially operated by the company. [4]
Metroline Manchester is set to use a mixture of diesel and battery electric buses, with new deliveries primarily including 110 MCV bodied Volvo BZLs, [9] Wright StreetDeck Ultroliners and Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMCs. Up to 125 buses, including 32 BYD Alexander Dennis Enviro400EVs based at Sharston, 20 Scania OmniCitys and 52 Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B9TLs based at Queens Road, are also inherited from Stagecoach Manchester via the TfGM fleet Residual Value Mechanism. [1] Metroline Manchester also inherited a fleet of Alexander Dennis Enviro400s and Alexander Dennis Enviro400Hs from Stagecoach Manchester and Stagecoach Yorkshire, while a fleet of Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC bodied Volvo B5LHs were also purchased second hand from Stagecoach East Scotland.[ citation needed ]
Stagecoach West Scotland is an operating region of Stagecoach UK Bus, comprising Western Buses Ltd based in Ayr, Scotland.
Magic Bus was a brand of the Stagecoach Group for local bus operations in the United Kingdom, usually operated on routes with strong competition from other operators. Until the rollout of the Bee Network, the brand was most commonly used in Manchester, though in the past, it was also employed in Glasgow, Newcastle, Liverpool, and Rotherham. A similar brand Magic Mini was also used in Corby, Ayrshire and the Scottish Highlands.
Stagecoach West is a bus operator providing services in Gloucestershire, Bristol, Swindon, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire, North Somerset and Herefordshire, in the West of England. The company is a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group.
First Greater Manchester is a bus operator in Greater Manchester. It is a subsidiary of the FirstGroup, operating franchised Bee Network bus services on contract to Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM). The operator was once dominant in the northern areas of Greater Manchester, competing against Stagecoach Manchester, which was dominant in southern areas of the county; however in recent years it has scaled back its operations, now primarily serving the metropolitan boroughs of Oldham and Rochdale.
Manchester Piccadilly Gardens bus station, often abbreviated to Piccadilly Gardens, is one of two main bus stations in Manchester city centre.
Stagecoach Manchester is a major bus operator in Greater Manchester, operating franchised Bee Network bus services on contract to Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM). It is the largest UK bus subsidiary of Stagecoach Group outside of Greater London, as well as the largest within the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester by passenger numbers, carrying up to 96.2 million passengers in 2019/20.
Stagecoach East is a bus operator providing local and regional services across the East of England, operating in the counties of Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. The company is a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group and is headquartered and registered in Cambridge.
Arriva North West is a major bus operator running services in North West England in the Merseyside area. It is a subsidiary of Arriva UK Bus.
The Wilmslow Road bus corridor is a 5.5-mile-long section of road in Manchester that is served by a large number of bus services. The corridor runs from Parrs Wood to Manchester city centre along Wilmslow and Oxford Roads, serving Didsbury, Withington, Fallowfield and Rusholme.
Ashton-under-Lyne bus station is a bus station that is located in the town of Ashton-under-Lyne in Greater Manchester, run by Transport for Greater Manchester. The bus station is situated on Wellington Road and adjoins the Arcades Shopping Centre. The bus station was opened in 2020 and replaced the previous bus station that was built on the current site.
Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire operates both local and regional bus services in Cumbria, Lancashire, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear, England, as well as Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group, which operates bus and coach services across the United Kingdom.
Stagecoach Merseyside and South Lancashire is a major operator of bus services in North West England. It is a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group and is headquartered in Liverpool.
The Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMC, also marketed as the Alexander Dennis Enviro200, is a single-decker city bus produced by Alexander Dennis since 2014 as the successor to the Enviro200 midibus and Enviro300 full-size bus. The first Enviro200 MMCs entered service with National Express West Midlands in 2015. Notably, Enviro200 MMCs have been modified by Fusion Processing to be used as the basis for the first driverless bus trials in the United Kingdom.
Go North West is a bus operator in Greater Manchester, England. It is a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group, operating franchised Bee Network bus services on contract to Transport for Greater Manchester.
The Volvo BZL is a full-size zero tailpipe emissions battery electric bus chassis for both single-deck buses and double-deck buses, manufactured by Volvo AB since 2021.
The Bee Network is an integrated transport network for Greater Manchester, comprising bus, tram, cycling and walking routes. Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) is expected to have the network operational by 2025, with commuter rail services expected to be joining the network in 2028. Initially unveiled in 2018, the project is aiming to create a London-style transport system, to encourage more people to take public transport instead of cars.
The Alexander Dennis Enviro400EV is a battery electric double-decker bus produced by the British bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis in partnership with Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD Auto since 2018. Based on its Alexander Dennis Enviro400 City body, which was launched in 2015 to compete with the hybrid electric New Routemaster, the Enviro400EV is produced at Alexander Dennis' Falkirk and Scarborough factories in the United Kingdom, with production of the type at the company's Larbert headquarters set to also commence in mid-2023. The Enviro400EV is available both as a complete integral battery electric bus and as a battery electric bus body on a BYD K series chassis, as well the integral Enviro400FCEV fuel cell bus.
The Alexander Dennis Enviro200EV is a battery electric single-deck bus produced by the British bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis in partnership with Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD Auto since 2015.
The Alexander Dennis Enviro100EV is a battery electric integral midibus built by British bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis. It is the first midibus produced by the company equipped with Alexander Dennis' own in-house electric drivetrain, complementing the BYD-powered Enviro200EV in the Alexander Dennis product range. The body of the bus is to be assembled in Zhuhai in China, while the chassis of the bus is to be assembled with the body at the Alexander Dennis factory in Scarborough in England.
Greater Manchester bus route 135 is a Bee Network contracted bus route in Greater Manchester, England. Running between Piccadilly Gardens in Manchester city centre and Bury Interchange, it is operated by Stagecoach Manchester.
Media related to Metroline Manchester at Wikimedia Commons
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