West Yorkshire bus franchising

[61653 HTAFC]

Technically incorrect, the official name of the administrative area was "County of York, West Riding". Locals talking to outsiders not familiar with the concept of Ridings would tend to talk about West Yorkshire to avoid having to give the explanation. And the West Riding covered a very much bigger area than the modern metropolitan version: it included nearly all of what has been known as South Yorkshire since 1974 (a name, which despite initial resistance due to there never having been a South Riding, is largely accepted by people in that area today) as well as places such as Harrogate, Ripon and Skipton, few of whose latter-day residents would take kindly to being associated with urbanised West Yorkshire (Metropolitan). So yes, depending on the context the use of plain West Yorkshire can be problematic.

That's largely semantics- People may well have used "West Yorkshire" as a shorthand for the West Riding prior to 1974, but the area named West Yorkshire officially has always been the present county. I'm well into middle age now but the present-day metropolitan county predates me by almost a decade, so the number of people who'd be genuinely confused by the franchised bus network being called "West Yorkshire Transport" will be tiny. A few older people making wry comments about old times is not something I would deem "problematic" by any stretch.

 

[mattb7tl]

Erm.. I was agreeing with you!

Ah, I was the confused one.

My own family history (on the paternal side) is in the textile industry, but I don't think it's universal enough to be the chosen focus for the name, if such a focus should be desired anyway. Bradford, Calderdale, Huddersfield and the Heavy Woollen District (no K-word, thanks!) have that history, but Wakefield, the Five Towns and the hinterland south of Huddersfield were predominantly coal-mining areas. "Weaver Network" sounds completely random for people there. There's also the rather unfortunate impression of the word "weave"- it suggests a bus route that goes all round the houses instead of taking a quick and direct path, to me at least.

You make a fair point about the coal mining areas, no single industry truly covers the whole region. That said, if you are going to anchor a brand in any shared heritage, textiles probably cast the widest net. It may not speak directly to Wakefield or the Five Towns, but it is still a nod to the broader industrial character of West Yorkshire, and from my view, still represents those areas. At the end of the day, a name is just a name, it does not need to be a perfect historical document. But it has real value in having something with local resonance rather than the soul devoid options we see with South Yorkshire and Merseyside.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Ah, I was the confused one.


You make a fair point about the coal mining areas, no single industry truly covers the whole region. That said, if you are going to anchor a brand in any shared heritage, textiles probably cast the widest net. It may not speak directly to Wakefield or the Five Towns, but it is still a nod to the broader industrial character of West Yorkshire, and from my view, still represents those areas. At the end of the day, a name is just a name, it does not need to be a perfect historical document. But it has real value in having something with local resonance rather than the soul devoid options we see with South Yorkshire and Merseyside.

I'm just not convinced that a fancy name is necessary or adds value. They're buses in West Yorkshire, why not just call the system "West Yorkshire Buses"? There's no need for any bells and whistles.
The South Yorkshire "People's Network" or whatever it's called is a bit cringeworthy, but at least they didn't call it the "Collier's Network" or something like that... and hard-left politics isn't a completely foreign concept in South Yorkshire either.

 

[mattb7tl]

I'm just not convinced that a fancy name is necessary or adds value. They're buses in West Yorkshire, why not just call the system "West Yorkshire Buses"? There's no need for any bells and whistles.
The South Yorkshire "People's Network" or whatever it's called is a bit cringeworthy, but at least they didn't call it the "Collier's Network" or something like that... and hard-left politics isn't a completely foreign concept in South Yorkshire either.

What is the point in doing the bare minimum?

Look at the operators that actually care about presentation, the ones with a local targeted brand and sense that someone has put genuine thought into the product. Those are the ones stimulating demand, growing ridership, and expanding services. Then look at the ones with the "it's just a bus" mentality, the soulless, devoid operators who think people will board whatever turns up. Those are exactly the companies that have failed to attract new passengers for decades and those are the kinds of operators we have been stuck with in the region.

These are the same operators that push the narrative that bus priority is the silver bullet, that giving them more road space, everything will turn around. But even when they get that priority, they still cannot stimulate demand, because the problem was never the infrastructure. It is that they lack both the care and the skillset to actually grow a network. They have zero credibility on this, and frankly should not be treated as experts or consulted as though their opinions carry weight (they don't)

 

[Pyewipecarshed]

How would "West Yorkshire" be problematic? West Yorkshire was invented in 1974 and is no older than the PTE/ITA/CA/whatever we call it this week. The West Riding of Yorkshire is the historic name which covered a greater area.

It's possible that the trading name "West Yorkshire" is owned by First, given that First was part-formed from Badgerline group, who took over Yorkshire Rider, who had previously taken over West Yorkshire Road Car, t/a West Yorkshire.

And now my head hurts

 

[61653 HTAFC]

What is the point in doing the bare minimum?

Look at the operators that actually care about presentation, the ones with a local targeted brand and sense that someone has put genuine thought into the product. Those are the ones stimulating demand, growing ridership, and expanding services. Then look at the ones with the "it's just a bus" mentality, the soulless, devoid operators who think people will board whatever turns up. Those are exactly the companies that have failed to attract new passengers for decades and those are the kinds of operators we have been stuck with in the region.

These are the same operators that push the narrative that bus priority is the silver bullet, that giving them more road space, everything will turn around. But even when they get that priority, they still cannot stimulate demand, because the problem was never the infrastructure. It is that they lack both the care and the skillset to actually grow a network. They have zero credibility on this, and frankly should not be treated as experts or consulted as though their opinions carry weight (they don't)

Buses in London don't have fancy names or branding (Superloop notwithstanding), and London has the highest ridership in the country by a huge margin. London's set-up is also the example being followed by franchising. You aren't comparing apples with apples here- fancy branding is useful to gain an advantage over your competition when you're operating commercially, but under a franchised system the competition doesn't take place at the roadside. The "Weaver Network" doesn't need to "stand out" from a rival operator, it just needs to be clear and easily identifiable to passengers.
Having a uniform colour scheme and an uncluttered livery isn't "doing the bare minimum" it's being clear and concise.

It's possible that the trading name "West Yorkshire" is owned by First, given that First was part-formed from Badgerline group, who took over Yorkshire Rider, who had previously taken over West Yorkshire Road Car, t/a West Yorkshire.

And now my head hurts

If that is the case, then frankly the law is an ass. Things like this have come up before with things like heritage liveries on the railway, that X TOC inherited the rights to a livery and this means Y TOC needs permission from X to paint a single unit in said livery- it's utter nonsense in my opinion. At the very least, if an operator can claim ownership of a generic regionalised name like "West Yorkshire" it should be on a strictly "use it or lose it" basis.

 

[mattb7tl]

Buses in London don't have fancy names or branding (Superloop notwithstanding), and London has the highest ridership in the country by a huge margin. London's set-up is also the example being followed by franchising. You aren't comparing apples with apples here- fancy branding is useful to gain an advantage over your competition when you're operating commercially, but under a franchised system the competition doesn't take place at the roadside. The "Weaver Network" doesn't need to "stand out" from a rival operator, it just needs to be clear and easily identifiable to passengers.
Having a uniform colour scheme and an uncluttered livery isn't "doing the bare minimum" it's being clear and concise.

Branding does not only matter in competitive markets, in fact the opposite, as the successful examples are almost exclusively operators in monopolistic conditions. Transdev, Go South Coast, have not faced meaningful roadside competition in decades. Yet they have invested heavily in brand and presentation and built loyal, growing patronage as a result. Then you have Reading Buses and Nottingham City Transport, publicly owned, laser focused on brand and passenger experience, and delivering some of the best ridership results in the country. Notably, neither has leaned on bus priority as a crutch to get there.

Buses never had sufficient patronage to sustain genuine multi operator competition, which is precisely why it died off decades ago. The operators that actually grew their networks did so by providing a quality experience inside and out. They did not sit around with a victim complex demanding infrastructure fixes before they would perform. They built patronage without it. Weaver can do the same alongside bus priority.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Branding does not only matter in competitive markets, in fact the opposite, as the successful examples are almost exclusively operators in monopolistic conditions. Transdev, Go South Coast, have not faced meaningful roadside competition in decades. Yet they have invested heavily in brand and presentation and built loyal, growing patronage as a result. Then you have Reading Buses and Nottingham City Transport, publicly owned, laser focused on brand and passenger experience, and delivering some of the best ridership results in the country. Notably, neither has leaned on bus priority as a crutch to get there.

Buses never had sufficient patronage to sustain genuine multi operator competition, which is precisely why it died off decades ago. The operators that actually grew their networks did so by providing a quality experience inside and out. They did not sit around with a victim complex demanding infrastructure fixes before they would perform. They built patronage without it. Weaver can do the same alongside bus priority.

Both Reading Buses and Nottingham City Transport have sensible names that "do exactly what it says on the tin". "Weaver Network" isn't that, it's a contrived and vague stunt by a mayor who seems more interested in grabbing headlines than doing the unglamorous but important work of improving things in real terms. Manchester had the advantage of a longstanding symbolism in the city with bees, so lent itself to the "Bee Network" brand- even then, I'm not sure that it means quite as much in Bolton or Wigan.
There isn't really an equivalent "icon" for West Yorkshire specifically that would lend itself to being a basis for a brand. White Rose could work, but that's a symbol for all of Yorkshire and not just the bits of the former West Riding that's covered by WYCA. Yorkshire Terrier could be another option, but that again refers to all of Yorkshire whilst also being tied to one of the football clubs (and also being a brand used previously by an operator in Sheffield). In the absence of a suitable "mascot" for the brand, going down the Reading Buses or Nottingham City Transport route would be better than forcing something gimmicky that doesn't really fit naturally. Just call it West Yorkshire Transport, or if you insist on the trend for screwing around with word order "Buses West Yorks". "Weaver Network" just sounds naff and amateurish, it's an even worse brand than Yorkshire Tiger, something I previously didn't think was possible! At least the green livery looks decent enough, and feels like a natural evolution of the pre-deregulation colours.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Maybe that's part of the problem though

Whilst there's probably a desire for a New Broom approach to create a whole new swanky identity (especially with Greater Manchester setting the template with Bee Network, rather than the decades-old GMPTE), there's also a question about what "Metro" meant to the people of West Yorkshire

I’m sure that’s the justification - it’s bold, visionary, different and all manner of other synonyms for new.

To my mind, it’s just not representative of West Yorkshire nor is it non-specific enough to be flexibly applied and so falls between two stools.

 

[Simon75]

With Manchester and the Bee, most people would associate with the logo of Boddingtons bitter, than the City, again GM Transport would have sounded better . West Yorkshire could also called it Travel West Yorkshire

 

[Deerfold]

It seems a shame the name was announced just months after London named its Weaver line, meaning transport searches may find the wrong one, initially. If I google "Weaver line" or "Weaver route" I get directed to the rail line and I'm in West Yorkshire.

 

[SCH117X]

It's possible that the trading name "West Yorkshire" is owned by First, given that First was part-formed from Badgerline group, who took over Yorkshire Rider, who had previously taken over West Yorkshire Road Car, t/a West Yorkshire.

Not so. West Yorkshire Road Car sold all its bus services off. Leeds and Bradford operations did go to Yorkshire Rider but those based on Keighhley, Harrogate and York/Malton went elsewhere. York was a few years later acquired by Yorkshire Rider.

 

[Bristol LHS]

It feels like Ms Brabin saw what Mr Burnham was doing over the hills with the "Bee Network" and wanted some of that glory to rub off on her... can't say it's worked so far!

I think this nails it. See also Kim McGuiness in the North East with ‘Angel Network’, when the region has a unique brand (Nexus) and arguably the most iconic graphic devices/typography outside London with the Calvert-designed logo and font for the Metro, which Nexus have extended to cover buses, ferry, etc in recent years. It’s just stuff that sounds good on a political leaflet but operationalises really poorly (see the Weaver a network bus livery as a good example, though South Yorkshire has done better with the overall orange Peoples Network)

 

[Pyewipecarshed]

Not so. West Yorkshire Road Car sold all its bus services off. Leeds and Bradford operations did go to Yorkshire Rider but those based on Keighhley, Harrogate and York/Malton went elsewhere. York was a few years later acquired by Yorkshire Rider.

No, you have it backwards!
West Yorkshire was privatised by sale to the AJS Group- essentially a management buyout, but with some complications which are not relevant here.
In December 1988 the Keighley, Harrogate and York/Malton operations were split from the main company (as Keighley and District, Harrogate and District and York City and District, respectively).

In July 1989 the "West Yorkshire" branded operations from Leeds, Bradford and Otley were sold to Yorkshire Rider along with the trading name. YR then had a number of buses in its livery with West Yorkshire fleet names.

AJS retained the rest at that point, all trading under their local names and with legal lettering to match.
At some point in 1989 AJS purchased York new-startup independent Target Travel.
In early -1990 Malton was split from York C&D to form Yorkshire Coastliner.
Then in July 1990 AJS sold York City and District and Target Travel to Yorkshire Rider, who also bought Reynard Buses at the same time.

So Yorkshire Rider ended up owning the West Yorkshire name, which presumably passed with it to First (eventually).

Similarly Yorkshire Terrier is mentioned up thread; that company was bought by Traction Group who passed to Stagecoach, so chances are the name is owned by Stagecoach!

 

[SCH117X]

Even so West Yorkshire Road Car as a company is now seemingly devoid of any officals - its registered address is that of a sole director, David Hudson a stalwart of the bus preservation scenem who died last week so what happess nopw is anyones guess https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/04369320
The West Yorkshire branding has been carried by two Conmexions vehcies so is not seemingly strictly controlled by First should they have any say.

 

[Steve440]

I have just passed a red Wrightbus Electroliner heading East on the M62 showing Weaver Network on its destination. Maybe a demonstration vehicle?

 

[geoffk]

I think this nails it. See also Kim McGuiness in the North East with ‘Angel Network’, when the region has a unique brand (Nexus) and arguably the most iconic graphic devices/typography outside London with the Calvert-designed logo and font for the Metro, which Nexus have extended to cover buses, ferry, etc in recent years. It’s just stuff that sounds good on a political leaflet but operationalises really poorly (see the Weaver a network bus livery as a good example, though South Yorkshire has done better with the overall orange Peoples Network)

I acknowledge that there were non-geographical names among the NBC companies - Crosville, Red & White, United and United Counties - but I still prefer to see geographically-based fleet names because then there's no confusion about where they are. Perhaps I'm just old-fashioned!

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

I acknowledge that there were non-geographical names among the NBC companies - Crosville, Red & White, United and United Counties - but I still prefer to see geographically-based fleet names because then there's no confusion about where they are. Perhaps I'm just old-fashioned!

Even then, there were anomalies. Lincolnshire Road Car had a depot in Nottinghamshire and in the Yorkshire part of Humberside. Then post 1974, you had West Yorkshire RCC operating in North Yorkshire (as were West Riding) and that's without the straying over boundaries!

I'm ok with non-geographical names - I just think that Metro was an existing name with a level of brand awareness (that could be modernised and improved) whereas Weavers Network doesn't have that resonance especially outside of the Woollen area. However, it is very subjective.

 

[Tetchytyke]

I'm ok with non-geographical names - I just think that Metro was an existing name with a level of brand awareness (that could be modernised and improved) whereas Weavers Network doesn't have that resonance especially outside of the Woollen area. However, it is very subjective.

MetroBus as a brand used by the PTE pre-dates privatisation. They used the verona green and cream livery and the branding on the NBC buses as well as the PTE buses.

I really don't like Weaver Network as a name, especially coming from a part of West Yorkshire which was more about the spinning than the weaving. May as well have called it the Rhubarb Network. I also think Bee Network is a terrible name.

As for Angel Network in the north east, that somehow manages to be even worse again. It sounds like a chain of yoga studios.

 

[AWWisher]

Even then, there were anomalies. Lincolnshire Road Car had a depot in Nottinghamshire and in the Yorkshire part of Humberside. Then post 1974, you had West Yorkshire RCC operating in North Yorkshire (as were West Riding) and that's without the straying over boundaries!

I'm ok with non-geographical names - I just think that Metro was an existing name with a level of brand awareness (that could be modernised and improved) whereas Weavers Network doesn't have that resonance especially outside of the Woollen area. However, it is very subjective.

Leeds, Bradford, Huddersfield & Halifax, and all the constituent towns therein, have a history in the textile industry. that's four out of five - sorry, Wakefield.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

MetroBus as a brand used by the PTE pre-dates privatisation. They used the verona green and cream livery and the branding on the NBC buses as well as the PTE buses.

I really don't like Weaver Network as a name, especially coming from a part of West Yorkshire which was more about the spinning than the weaving. May as well have called it the Rhubarb Network. I also think Bee Network is a terrible name.

As for Angel Network in the north east, that somehow manages to be even worse again. It sounds like a chain of yoga studios.

All of these "X Network" brands are terrible IMO, they're jumping on a bit of a trend and they'll all age terribly. It's the same as how all of a sudden in the 2000s it was suddenly passé to be called "X Transport" and everything became "Transport for X".
Even in the public transport desert that is the USA, the equivalent of PTEs where they exist have better branding, even when it's just the acronym of the Transit Authority e.g. SEPTA.

Leeds, Bradford, Huddersfield & Halifax, and all the constituent towns therein, have a history in the textile industry. that's four out of five - sorry, Wakefield.

The textile industry is more than just weaving though!

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Leeds, Bradford, Huddersfield & Halifax, and all the constituent towns therein, have a history in the textile industry. that's four out of five - sorry, Wakefield.

I did say that I didn't think it resonated that well outside the Woollen district - Leeds had quite a diverse economic base, and we're talking about a largely dead industry.

However, it is all subjective and a matter of opinion as to whether you want something like it or not

 

[GoneSouth]

All of these "X Network" brands are terrible IMO, they're jumping on a bit of a trend and they'll all age terribly. It's the same as how all of a sudden in the 2000s it was suddenly passé to be called "X Transport" and everything became "Transport for X".
Even in the public transport desert that is the USA, the equivalent of PTEs where they exist have better branding, even when it's just the acronym of the Transit Authority e.g. SEPTA.

The textile industry is more than just weaving though!

So we should call it the weaver, dyer, spinner, comber network? Or maybe add miner to satisfy the Wakefield crowd?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 May 2026 ==

Or, should they have just gone with the WYTA West Yorkshire Transit Authority?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 May 2026 ==

Actually, I think TfY sounds ok, everybody would have just called it toffee

 

[61653 HTAFC]

So we should call it the weaver, dyer, spinner, comber network? Or maybe add miner to satisfy the Wakefield crowd?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 May 2026 ==

Or, should they have just gone with the WYTA West Yorkshire Transit Authority?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 May 2026 ==

Actually, I think TfY sounds ok, everybody would have just called it toffee

I was being a little bit facetious with the textile thing, but it just shows how tenuous and gimmicky the Weaver Network name is. West Yorkshire Transport works fine, does exactly what it says on the tin (or bus).

TfY could work, maybe once the entirety of Yorkshire joins back together and declares independence... though I could see it being given some graffiti edits and/or unflattering nicknames if the service is poor...
"TfY... Teks f***in' Yonks!"

 

[GoneSouth]

I was being a little bit facetious with the textile thing, but it just shows how tenuous and gimmicky the Weaver Network name is. West Yorkshire Transport works fine, does exactly what it says on the tin (or bus).

TfY could work, maybe once the entirety of Yorkshire joins back together and declares independence... though I could see it being given some graffiti edits and/or unflattering nicknames if the service is poor...
"TfY... Teks f***in' Yonks!"

South Yorks used to be part of the west riding anyway so it would be like fixing something that was broken years ago. !

Transport for Yorkshire gets my vote, and if York has anything to say on the issue they are perfectly welcome to join

 

[Tetchytyke]

Leeds, Bradford, Huddersfield & Halifax, and all the constituent towns therein, have a history in the textile industry. that's four out of five - sorry, Wakefield.

My bit of Bradford was spinning not weaving!

Or, should they have just gone with the WYTA West Yorkshire Transit Authority?

WY MetroBus, nice plain Verona green and buttermilk livery, job done.

As this photo on Flickr from John Law shows:

https://flic.kr/p/ag3tWH

 

[GoneSouth]

My bit of Bradford was spinning not weaving!


WY MetroBus, nice plain Verona green and buttermilk livery, job done.

As this photo on Flickr from John Law shows:

https://flic.kr/p/ag3tWH

I never really liked that back in my Leeds days. Preferred the West Yorkshire red and white. It was however preferable to the Yorkshire Rider mess that followed

 

[gc4946]

If I suggest an alternative name for the Weaver Network, I'd go for West Yorkshire Metro, or, West Yorkshire Travel.
It'll be interesting to see whether their new buses on order will have a simplified livery compared with the demonstration version which had extensive graphics below the lower deck windows https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jdvxi

 

[mattb7tl]

I have just passed a red Wrightbus Electroliner heading East on the M62 showing Weaver Network on its destination. Maybe a demonstration vehicle?

Metro, at one point, mentioned on their website that we would see weaver vehicles start to appear on the streets in 2026. This has since been removed, but you never know.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

I have just passed a red Wrightbus Electroliner heading East on the M62 showing Weaver Network on its destination. Maybe a demonstration vehicle?

Possibly or just where they were testing displays.

I was passed by an all red Wright Electroliner on the A30 with First Group on the display. It was actually headed for Plymouth Citybus - irony not lost!!