Stagecoach in Hull

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Stagecoach in Hull
Stagecoach in Hull bus 18435 (YN06 LMM), Showbus 2009.jpg
Alexander ALX400 bodied Dennis Trident 2 painted in retro KHCT livery in 2009
ParentStagecoach
Founded1994
HeadquartersHull
Service areaCottingham
Hedon
Kingston upon Hull
Wawne
Beverley
Bridlington
Service typeBus services
HubsHull Paragon Interchange
Depots1
Websitewww.stagecoachbus.com

Stagecoach in Hull[1] is a bus operator providing services in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is a subsidiary of Stagecoach East Midlands, a subdivision of the Stagecoach Group.

History[]

East Lancs E Type bodied Dennis Dominator in Hull in May 1995
Fleet in original Stagecoach livery in 2001

Stagecoach in Hull's origins can be traced back to Hull Corporation Transport, whose tramway operations began in 1899. Motorbus operations would first begin in 1909 with a fleet of six buses, later restarting in 1921 and expanding alongside the city's trolleybus network. The network was abandoned in 1963, replaced by fleets of Leyland Atlantean motorbuses. Hull Corporation Transport were one of the quickest operators of one-person operated buses, and in November 1972, became the first bus operator in the United Kingdom to phase out the use of conductors.[2][3][4] In the early 1970s[when?], Hull Corporation Transport was renamed to Kingston upon Hull City Transport (KHCT).

Prior to deregulation, KHCT shared Hull's bus network with then-National Bus Company subsidiary East Yorkshire Motor Services (EYMS), which had been split into three fare zones following a co-ordination agreement in 1934, in which both companies could gain a share of bus fares around the city. KHCT's operating area would expand throughout the 1970s with the construction of both the Bransholme and Orchard Park housing estates,[4] and in 1980, KHCT entered into the Crown Card weekly ticket scheme with East Yorkshire.[5] To comply with the Transport Act 1985 and ensuing deregulation of the bus industry, in 1986 the assets of KHCT were transferred to a new legal entity,[6] while two garages on Cottingham Road and Holderness Road were closed, resulting in a significant downsizing of KHCT's bus fleet.[4]

Following deregulation, the co-ordination agreement between KHCT and EYMS, which was now owned by its management,[7] was abolished, and the two operators became engaged in competition from the late 1980s until 1994. Both companies began operating competitively on each other's network of services,[8] while KHCT was challenged by smaller independent operators entering Hull's bus network, including City Traveller, Connor & Graham, Metro Citybus and Pride of the Road/North Bank Travel.[9][10][11][12] These operators would eventually go bankrupt or were taken over by either KHCT or EYMS, with the former Citilink brand retained as a low-cost subsidiary of KHCT until it was wound up in 1992.[4][13][12]

As a consequence of competition around Hull and Humberside, KHCT incurred heavy losses, losing £2 million and incurring £782,000 in debts in 1993.[14][15] KHCT were also removed from the Crown Card ticket scheme amid competition with EYMS a year prior.[16] The company was subject to a hostile takeover bid from EYMS, though while the bid was rejected,[citation needed] faced with escalating losses and increased competition, Kingston upon Hull City Council sold KHCT to Stockton-on-Tees based Cleveland Transit in December 1993.[4][17][better source needed] This deal saw KHCT's employees a 49% stake in the business, and a year later, led to KHCT's 'bus war' with EYMS ending after both companies agreed to co-ordinate their Hull timetables.[18] Half of the city council's £2.7 million profit from the sale, however, would be lost to a £1.4 million debt owned to Humberside County Council.[19]

In November 1994, Cleveland Transit, considered[by whom?] one of the emerging 'groups' within the British bus industry with acquisitions in County Durham, Teesside and Yorkshire, was sold to Stagecoach Holdings.[17][better source needed] KHCT's blue and white livery, a modified version based on Cleveland Transit's green livery, was maintained by Stagecoach. However by December 1995, KHCT had been renamed to Stagecoach Kingston Upon Hull, later shortened to Stagecoach in Hull, with the Stagecoach corporate livery being introduced by the spring of 1996.[citation needed]

Until April 2013, Stagecoach in Hull operated services on the Cleveland Transit[20] when they were transferred to the Lincolnshire Road Car[1] licence.[21][22]

Services[]

Simplibus network[]

Stagecoach in Hull were the second operator in Stagecoach East Midlands to launch a 'Simplibus' network, following on from Stagecoach Grimsby-Cleethorpes in 2014. The new network saw existing routes renumbered from west to east into a numerical sequence of 1–16, as well as providing new services connecting Orchard Park Estate, Kingswood and East Hull. The new services launched on 6 September 2015 and replaced the previous 'Frequento' brand.[23]

The new Simplibus services would later result in a combined £8.4 million investment in a fleet of new buses over three years, with Stagecoach in Hull receiving 46 new single decker and double decker buses between 2016 and 2019, all delivered new with Simplibus branding.[24][25]

The launch of the new Stagecoach Group liveries in 2020 has seen the Simplibus branding being slowly phased out. As well as this, some of the routes introduced in 2015 have either been heavily rerouted or withdrawn.

Council tenders[]

Stagecoach in Hull first took on the Priory Park Park & Ride services from CT Plus in September 2014, following a retendering process by Hull City Council. The company invested in five single deckers, three of which were given blue route-branding for the service, in the aim of improving bus services for the 2017 City of Culture events.[26]

Retendering by the East Riding of Yorkshire Council in 2019 saw Stagecoach in Hull gain the contract to operate seasonal park and ride services in Bridlington from East Yorkshire, also launching a '99' bus service operating from Hull to Bridlington three times a day.[27][28] Stagecoach would later gain Hull City Council bus service contracts from East Yorkshire in 2021, being awarded funding to run both an East Hull supermarket shuttle and services connecting West Hull estates.[29]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Companies House extract company no 232799 Lincolnshire Road Car Co Limited
  2. ^ "Fastest o-m-o in Hull". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 10 December 1971. p. 19. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  3. ^ "Hull first with 100 per cent o-m-o". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 24 November 1972. p. 29. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e Wells, Malcolm; Morfitt, Paul (2017). Hull Corporation Buses. Amberley Publishing Limited. pp. 4–6. ISBN 978-1-4456-6754-6. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  5. ^ "Hull card". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 25 October 1980. p. 28. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  6. ^ Companies House extract company no 1979370 Kingston upon Hull City Transport Limited
  7. ^ "E Yorks snapped up". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 14 February 1987. p. 18. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  8. ^ Jarosz, Andrew (15 August 1992). "EYMS attacks Hull services". Coach & Bus Week. No. 26. Peterborough: Emap. p. 14.
  9. ^ "Metro tightens up Hull competition". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 15 June 1989. p. 19. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  10. ^ "Hull independent's KHCT complaint". Coach & Bus Week. No. 24. Peterborough: Emap. 1 August 1992. p. 3.
  11. ^ "KHCT ups the pace". Coach & Bus Week. No. 25. Peterborough: Emap. 8 August 1992. p. 6.
  12. ^ a b Jarosz, Andrew (26 September 1992). "Defence of KHCT starts". Coach & Bus Week. No. 32. Peterborough: Emap. p. 6.
  13. ^ "KHCT snaps up new Citylink". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 16 March 1989. p. 21. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  14. ^ Jarosz, Andrew (22 May 1993). "KHCT debt confirmed". Coach & Bus Week. Peterborough: Emap. p. 10.
  15. ^ Jarosz, Andrew (5 March 1994). "Inquiry call as KHCT books show £2m loss". Coach & Bus Week. Peterborough: Emap. p. 10.
  16. ^ "Competition hotting up in Hull". Coach & Bus Week. No. 29. Peterborough: Emap. 5 September 1992. p. 9.
  17. ^ a b Cleveland Transit Ltd 1991 - to date tomorrows-history.com
  18. ^ Jarosz, Andrew (6 August 1994). "Peace breaks out after Hull bus war". Coach & Bus Week. No. 128. Peterborough: Emap. p. 9.
  19. ^ Jarosz, Andrew (19 February 1994). "Debt wipes out most of KHCT sale profit". Coach & Bus Week. Peterborough: Emap. p. 19.
  20. ^ Companies House extract company no 2546698 Cleveland Transit Limited
  21. ^ Stagecoach Licence, Route, and Timetable Changes Humber Transport 7 February 2013
  22. ^ Notices and Proceedings Traffic Commissioner for the North Eastern Traffic Area 22 February 2013
  23. ^ "Simplified network goes live in Hull". routeone. Peterborough. 27 October 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  24. ^ "Stagecoach invests £2.7m in new vehicles for Hull". Coach & Bus Week. Peterborough: EMAP Automotive. 22 November 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  25. ^ Robinson, Hannah (12 June 2019). "Stagecoach to launch 31 new buses in Hull next week - and they have some great features". Hull Daily Mail. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  26. ^ "Stagecoach improve Hull Park & Ride". Coach & Bus Week. Peterborough: EMAP Automotive. 6 October 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  27. ^ "Vehicle Operator Licensing - GOV.UK". www.vehicle-operator-licensing.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  28. ^ "Fast Link to the Coast launches in Hull". www.stagecoachbus.com. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  29. ^ "Hull Services 21, 50 & 51". East Yorkshire. Retrieved 17 July 2021.

External links[]

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