 | |
| Parent | Stagecoach Group |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2011 [lower-alpha 1] |
| Headquarters | Carlisle, Cumbria England |
| Service area | |
| Service type | Bus and coach |
| 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, coach, rail and tram 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). [lower-alpha 2] 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: this was almost immediately after gaining the Penrith and Carlisle depots from Ribble. The company was bought from the NBC by Stagecoach, 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.
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 In July 2012, funding was withdrawn and the service was taken over commercially by Stagecoach C&NL.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. [3]
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. [4]
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 [5] - between Bowness-on-Windermere and Grasmere via Windermere and Ambleside, with occasional early/late connections to the depot in Kendal. [6]
In April 2023, service 555 was renewed with a brand new fleet of nine Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC double-deck vehicles. [lower-alpha 3] 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. [7]
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. [8] [9]
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 StreetDeck, which operate within the Lake District National Park. [6]
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". [10] [11] [12] 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". [13]
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, now in the parish of Lakes, in Westmorland and Furness, Cumbria, England, The town was historically in Westmorland. 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 2596.
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 Westmorland and Furness, Cumbria, England, 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.
Windermere railway station serves Windermere in Cumbria, England. It is just south of the A591, about 25 min walk or a short bus ride from the lake. The station is located behind a branch of the Booths supermarket chain, which occupies the site of the original station building, in front of the Lakeland store. It is the terminus of the former Kendal and Windermere Railway single-track Windermere Branch Line, with a single platform serving one terminal track.
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.
Stagecoach Manchester is a major bus operator in Greater Manchester. 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. It is made up of two brands: Stagecoach and Magic Bus.
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.
The Blackburn 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 & 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.
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 travel centre, 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 district and 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.
Media related to Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire at Wikimedia CommonsBus companies operating in North West England | ||
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