 | |
| Parent | Stagecoach Group |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2011 [a] |
| Headquarters | Carlisle, Cumbria England |
| Service area | |
| Service type | Bus services |
| Depots | 7 |
| Website | www |
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.
The company has its origins in the purchase of Cumberland Motor Services and Ribble Motor Services from the National Bus Company in the late 1980s.
The company's head office is based in Carlisle. It was previously known as Stagecoach North West until 1 September 2011, when Stagecoach Merseyside amalgamated with Chorley and Preston depots to form Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire. [1] [2]
Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire predominantly operates commercial bus services in Cumbria and Lancashire, with some services extending into Dumfries and Galloway (79 & 179), as well as Northumberland and Tyne and Wear (685). The company also operate several contracted services on behalf of Cumbria County Council and Lancashire County Council.
Stagecoach in Cumbria is the trading name of Stagecoach North West Limited, and predominantly operates services in Cumbria. The company has been formerly known as Barrow Borough Transport, Stagecoach Cumberland and Stagecoach Ribble.
Cumberland Motor Services was one of the first National Bus Company subsidiaries to be privatised in 1986; this was almost immediately after gaining the Penrith and Carlisle depots from Ribble. [3] The company was bought from the NBC by Stagecoach in July 1987, [4] who split it into two territories: CMS Carlislebus for services within Carlisle itself and CMS Cumberland for the rest of the services; eventually, both territories merged with Ribble's south Cumbria services to become Stagecoach Cumberland. [5]
In 2005, the company commenced operation of Cumbria County Council-secured service X35, which ran between Barrow-in-Furness and Kendal via Ulverston and Grange-over-Sands. In July 2012, funding was withdrawn and the service was taken over commercially by Stagecoach C&NL. At the same time, the service was renumbered X6 and the route was diverted away from Westmorland General Hospital. [6]
In July 2016, a fleet of twelve Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC double-deck vehicles were introduced on service 555, which runs between Keswick and Lancaster via Grasmere – an investment totalling £2.5 million. [7]
In July 2017, a fleet of open-top Dennis Trident/Alexander ALX400 were replaced by new Volvo B5TL/Wright Gemini 3. Branded in the two-tone green Lakesider livery, the vehicles operate on service 599 - branded as "Lakesider" by Stagecoach [8] - between Bowness-on-Windermere and Grasmere via Windermere and Ambleside, with occasional early/late connections to the depot in Kendal. [9]
In April 2023, service 555 was renewed with a brand new fleet of nine Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC double-deck vehicles. [b] This investment totalled £3 million, and saw seven vehicles from the existing fleet of similar vehicles dating from 2016, cascaded to Barrow depot to operate services 6 and X6, between Barrow-in-Furness, Ulverston, and Windermere or Kendal, and the remaining five down to Morecambe. [10]
The company has been frequently criticised for charging high fares – especially when the cost of a single journey is equated against a comparative journey in London. [11] [12]
Stagecoach in Lancaster operates services in and around the towns of Lancaster and Morecambe. It is the trading name of Stagecoach North West Limited, and consists of the former Stagecoach Ribble services, as well as those formerly operated by Lancaster City Transport – a municipal bus operator which ceased trading in 1993.
As of April 2022, the company operates from five bus depots across the region: Barrow-in-Furness, Carlisle, Kendal, Morecambe and Workington, as well as two outstations: Catterall and Penrith. An outstation at Ingleton was closed in 2022, following the withdrawal of services 80 and 81.
The fleet consists mainly of diesel-powered single and double-deck buses manufactured by Alexander Dennis, Optare, Volvo and Wrightbus. Some double-deck vehicles are open-top, including a fleet of Wright Gemini 3 vehicles, which operate within the Lake District National Park. [9]
As of May 2022, vehicles in the fleet are in the process of being rebranded into the new fleet livery, which was revealed in January 2020. It consists of a white base with blue, green and orange swirls, featuring the company's updated logo. The livery name is "Stagecoach Local". [13] [14] [15] The former livery was introduced over 20 years prior, and consisted of vehicles painted in a white base, with a blue skirt, and red and orange swoops - named "Stagecoach Beachball". [16]
Although the Lakes Connection livery was initially used exclusively on service 555, the 2020 Stagecoach group-wide rebrand has seen this livery implemented on all buses based at Kendal, as well as a select number based at Carlisle, Morecambe and Workington. Central Lakes open top service 599 is branded as Lakesider, whilst service 78 linking Keswick and Seatoller, is branded as The Borrowdale Bus.
Cumbria is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders the Scottish council areas of Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders to the north, Northumberland and County Durham to the east, North Yorkshire to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Carlisle.
Ambleside is a town and former civil parish in the Westmorland and Furness district of Cumbria, England. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Westmorland and located in the Lake District National Park, the town sits at the head of Windermere, England's largest natural lake. In 2020 it had an estimated population of 2,596.
The Furness Railway (Furness) was a railway company operating in the Furness area of Lancashire in North West England.
BBC Radio Cumbria is the BBC's local radio station serving the county of Cumbria.
Grasmere is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Lakes, in the Westmorland and Furness district of Cumbria, England, and situated in the centre of the Lake District and named after its adjacent lake. Grasmere lies within the historic county of Westmorland. The Ambleside and Grasmere ward had an estimated population of 4,592 in 2019. William and Dorothy Wordsworth, the 'Lake Poets', lived in Grasmere for 14 years and called it "the loveliest spot that man hath ever found."
Heart North Lancashire & Cumbria was an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to north Lancashire and south Cumbria from studios in Lancaster.
Stagecoach North West was a major bus operator in North West England. The company was a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group, and had its origins in the purchase of Cumberland Motor Services 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.
The Barony of Kendal is a subdivision of the English historic county of Westmorland. It evolved from one of two ancient baronies that make up the county, the other being the Barony of Westmorland. In 1974, the entire county became part of the modern county of Cumbria and ceased to have an administrative function. At the same time, Kendal borough along with some other rural and urban districts in Westmorland was merged with the neighbouring parts of Lancashire, Furness and Cartmel, and also the Sedbergh Rural District of the West Riding of Yorkshire into the new South Lakeland district of the new county.
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.
Blackpool Transport Services Limited 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, Fleetwood and Preston. Blackpool Transport is owned by Blackpool Council.
The Burnley Bus Company operates both local and regional bus services in Greater Manchester and Lancashire, England. It is a subsidiary of Transdev Blazefield, which operates bus services across Greater Manchester, Lancashire, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire.
Rydal is a village in Cumbria, England. It is a small cluster of houses, a hotel, and St Mary's Church, on the A591 road midway between Ambleside and Grasmere.
Ribble Motor Services was a large regional bus operator in North West England based in Preston.
The Witch Way is the branding for long-standing English bus route X43, which runs between Burnley and Manchester. The service is currently operated by The Burnley Bus Company.
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.
Lancaster bus station serves the city of Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The bus station was funded by both the Lancashire County Council and Lancaster City Council. The station, situated in the centre of the city, was re-built and opened in 2001, is staffed full-time, completely covered and consists of 20 stands, a refreshment kiosk, on site toilet facilities and an electronic passenger information board. Directly outside the bus station is Lancaster's main taxi rank.
The Lakes Connection 555 is a bus route operated by Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire in Cumbria and Lancashire, England. The scenic route covers a distance of 45 miles (72 km) and runs between the towns of Keswick and Lancaster via Grasmere, Windermere, Kendal and Carnforth.
The Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC is a low-floor double-decker bus produced by the British bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis since 2014, replacing the Alexander Dennis Enviro400. The Enviro400 MMC is produced at Alexander Dennis' Falkirk and Scarborough factories in the United Kingdom.
Westmorland and Furness is a unitary authority area in Cumbria, England. The economy is mainly focused on tourism around both the Lake District and Cumbria Coast, shipbuilding and the port in Barrow-in-Furness, and agriculture in the rural parts of the area.
Cumberland Motor Services was a former bus operator running services in the county of Cumberland, as well as parts of Lancashire. Founded in 1921, the operator today is a part of the Stagecoach Group and, after a demerger from Stagecoach North West, trades as Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire.
Media related to Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire at Wikimedia CommonsBus companies operating in North West England | ||
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