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 Optare Solo leaving Chorley Interchange for Preston in March 2013 | |
| Parent | Rotala |
|---|---|
| Founded | June 1904 |
| Headquarters | Preston |
| Service area | Preston |
| Service type | Bus services |
| Fleet | 102 (February 2014) |
| Chief executive | Bob Dunn |
| Website | www.prestonbus.co.uk |
Preston Bus [1] is a bus operator running in the city of Preston, England, and surrounding areas. It is a subsidiary of Rotala. It gained some notoriety in 2009 when the Competition Commission ordered Stagecoach to sell it.
Preston Corporation began operating electric tram services in the Borough in 1904, although horse-drawn trams had been running since 1879. It began its first bus service, along Plungington Road, in 1922. Further bus services followed and eventually replaced the trams, the last of which ran in December 1935. The Borough Council continued to run the bus services until 1986 when, in order to comply with the Transport Act 1985, which prevented councils from running bus services directly, the assets were transferred to a new legal entity, Preston Borough Transport Limited [1] , which although 100% owned by the council was required to operate on an "arm's length" fully-commercial basis. In 1993, followed further pressure from the UK government for councils to dispose of their bus companies it was sold to its management and staff in 1993 in a management buyout. [2] The newly-formed company was known formally as "Preston Transport Holdings Ltd" but traded as Preston Bus.
In 2006, Preston Bus was subject to some high-profile competition from Stagecoach North West. Competition escalated into a bus war [3] with Stagecoach offering lower fares on the busiest routes. [4] The managing director of Preston Bus was concerned Stagecoach could force his company out of business. [5] Both companies accused each other of unprofessional behaviour. [6] On 10 June 2008, the two companies agreed to a code of practice by the traffic commissioner. [7] The competition continued, with Stagecoach operating routes within Preston and Preston Bus commencing a service between Preston and Penwortham, and a limited service between Preston and Southport, duplicating existing Stagecoach routes.
On 23 January 2009, Preston Bus was sold to Stagecoach. [8] [9] [10] The routes operated by Preston Bus were rebranded as Stagecoach in Preston from March 2009.
In November 2009 the Competition Commission ruled that the takeover by Stagecoach had adversely affected competition in the area and ordered Stagecoach sell Preston Bus. [11] [12] [13] Following this ruling, the Preston Bus name and logo was reinstated and the company was operated at arm's length from the main Stagecoach business. In January 2011 Preston Bus was sold to Rotala. [14] [15] [16]
The Preston Bus fleet was originally all double deckers, but latterly the company moved to single deckers and minibuses, with the most common vehicle in 2008 being the Optare Solo midibus.
As at February 2014, the fleet consisted of 102 buses. [17] Until the 1970s, fleet livery was cream and red when a blue and cream scheme was introduced. Upon the sale to Rotala, a cream, green and blue livery was introduced in 2011.
Stagecoach Group is a transport group based in Perth, Scotland. It operates buses, express coaches and a tram service in the United Kingdom.
Transdev Blazefield is a bus group, which operates local and regional bus services across Greater Manchester, Lancashire, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire, England. Formed in August 1991, the group has been a subsidiary of French-based operator Transdev since January 2006.
Bus deregulation in Great Britain involved the abolition of Road Service Licensing for bus services outside of Greater London. It began in 1980 with long-distance bus services and was extended to local bus services in 1986 under the Transport Act 1985. The abolition of Road Service Licensing removed the public sector's role in fare-setting, routes, and bus frequencies and returned those powers to bus operators.
Stagecoach North West was a major operator of bus services in North West England. It was a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group, and had its origins in the purchase of Cumberland in 1987 and Ribble Motor Services in 1988 from the National Bus Company. The head office of Stagecoach North West was in Carlisle. Although the cities of Liverpool and Manchester are in the North West of England, Stagecoach Manchester and Stagecoach Merseyside were run as separate divisions.
First Greater Manchester is a bus operator in Greater Manchester. It is a subsidiary of FirstGroup. It was once a major operator in the northern areas of the county 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 north eastern suburbs of Manchester, and the metropolitan boroughs of Oldham and Rochdale.
Stagecoach Yorkshire is an operating division of Stagecoach Group.
Blackpool Transport Services Ltd. is a bus and tram operator running within the boroughs of Blackpool and Fylde and into the surrounding area, including Fleetwood, Lytham St Annes, Poulton-le-Fylde, Cleveleys and now Preston with the introduction of the 74 and 75, which were previously operated by Preston Bus. It is owned by Blackpool Borough Council.
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Stagecoach in Preston was a network of bus routes running within the city of Preston, Lancashire and into the surrounding area. It was founded in 2009 after Stagecoach Group acquired Preston Bus that was founded in 1904. The company operated from the main depot on Deepdale Road and their other depot on Selbourne Street. In January 2011, the company was sold to Rotala, which now operates the services under the Preston Bus brand.
Preston is a city in Lancashire, around 50 kilometres (31 mi) north-west of Manchester.
Buses in Portsmouth are a form of public transport in the city of Portsmouth, England. Motor bus services in Portsmouth began in 1919, and were expanded in the 1930s following the closure of the Portsmouth Corporation Transport tram network. Trolleybuses were also operated between 1934 and 1963. Until 1988 the majority of services were provided by Portsmouth Corporation Transport, a municipal bus company owned by Portsmouth City Council. Other services into the city were operated by Southdown Motor Services, latterly as a subsidiary of the National Bus Company.
Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire is a major operator of bus services in North West England. It is a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group, and has its origins in the purchase of Ribble Motor Services in 1988 from the National Bus Company and Glenvale Transport in 2005. The head office of Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire is in Liverpool and was formed in 2011 following the merger of Stagecoach Merseyside and Ribble Motor Services which was the Chorley and Preston operations of Stagecoach North West.
Public transport in the Fylde is available for three modes of transport—bus, rail and tram—assisting residents of and visitors to the Fylde, a coastal plain in western Lancashire, England, without their own vehicle, to travel around much of the area's 64 square miles (170 km2).
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