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Do any Train Companies own replacement buses?

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LoverOfTrains

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Hi guys! I'm not sure if this belongs in this forum (moderators feel free to move it). I know that many TOCs hire buses from local bus companies for replacement bus services but are there any TOCs that have there own buses?

Thanks guys!

 
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Jordeh

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Hi guys! I'm not sure if this belongs in this forum (moderators feel free to move it). I know that many TOCs hire buses from local bus companies for replacement bus services but are there any TOCs that have there own buses?

Thanks guys!

Not sure this is quite what you mean but you could easily argue most TOCs own an awful lot of buses seeing as most TOCs are owned by bus companies (Stagecoach, Arriva, National Express, Go-Ahead, First etc)
 

WillPS

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Pretty sure the answer is No, although I think some buses have been long term allocated to rail replacement and repainted as such. There was definitely a bus with SWT branding.
 

MK Tom

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Hi guys! I'm not sure if this belongs in this forum (moderators feel free to move it). I know that many TOCs hire buses from local bus companies for replacement bus services but are there any TOCs that have there own buses?

Thanks guys!


*their own buses.

South West Trains had a number of Olympians painted in their own livery at one time, but I don't know if that's still the case. Here's one that's now in service with another operator.
 

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MCR247

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East Midlands trains have at least one I believe
 

34D

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Back in the 1990s a Yorkshire Rider volvo coach was liveried in GNER blue - this was mainly for a dedicated link Bradford-Wakefield though.
 

edwin_m

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I've seen Stagecoach buses branded "Rail Replacement" but I don't recall either SWT or EMT branding on them. Perhaps the branding is changed if they move around?
 

Hadders

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There was the Virgin Branded VT99 that ran from Milton Keynes to Luton Airport.

Operated by Stagecoach I believe, who own 49% of Virgin Rail Group. It just runs as a normal Stagecoach X99 service nowadays.
 

starrymarkb

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I don't think TOCs operate them directly, but if they have a sister bus company in the area then they will usually have some buses/coaches for rail replacement based there.

TBH I don't think TOCs would want the hassle of running a bus company solely for rail replacement. They would have to find work for Drivers when not doing rail replacement for example. A bus company would be able to use them on Service routes when trains are running.
 

GaryMcEwan

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I wouldn't say they are owned but, on certain local routes in Glasgow, Scotrail will utilise having First in Glasgow and use them for replacement bus services.
 

trentside

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East Midlands trains have at least one I believe

Stagecoach East Midlands have two 'Rail Replacement' branded Volvo Olympians - 16807/8, both ex-RoadCar examples with high backed seats. There are also quite a few ex-Megabus coaches in this colour scheme.

Some photographs of these vehicles out and about, courtesy of AC_Best on Flickr;

16807
https://www.flickr.com/photos/acbestphotography/13920397657/

52446
https://www.flickr.com/photos/acbestphotography/9401880097/

52621
https://www.flickr.com/photos/acbestphotography/13920357767/
 

trentside

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They end up on Northern rail replacements quite often - so it's not the first time they've been hired to First rail replacement!
 

34D

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I don't think TOCs operate them directly, but if they have a sister bus company in the area then they will usually have some buses/coaches for rail replacement based there.

TBH I don't think TOCs would want the hassle of running a bus company solely for rail replacement. They would have to find work for Drivers when not doing rail replacement for example. A bus company would be able to use them on Service routes when trains are running.

Erm - first have a dedicated unit (based in manchester iirc) for rail rep and a bit of private hire.
 

Tracky

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Arriva created a company to organise road replacements a couple of years ago. ATW and XC replacement road transport is now coordinated in house however rarely uses Arriva buses in part at least because Arriva buses don't have much spare capacity. Also, for longer distances services buses are far from ideal.

First Rail Support is a similar set up. Not sure if Stagecoach have their own version.
 

CatfordCat

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It depends really what you mean by TOCs owning buses.

Taking it literally, then I am fairly sure that no TOC (e.g. South West Trains / First Capital Connect) either owns buses, or holds a bus / coach operators' licence.

Similarly, the big groups, e.g. First plc / Stagecoach Holdings also do not directly own and operate buses or coaches - these are run by subsidiary companies e.g. Stagecoach South etc - the name on the operator disc and the name / address on the side of the bus / coach is the actual owner of the bus.

There are a host of reasons why the big groups have operations under a number of subsidiary 'bus companies' rather than have one huge, national legal entity.

It is not uncommon for some bus operators to have vehicles in other liveries, e.g. National Express (most but not all 'National Express' coaches are run under franchise by other bus / coach operators, the contract between Nat Ex and those operators generally requires branded vehicles), some coaches that run in the livery of holiday companies are owned and legally operated by a PSV operator not the holiday company. I think they are getting rarer, but I've seen buses running in Asda livery - again the vehicle is owned and operated by a particular bus company.

Within Stagecoach, there are vehicles which are legally operated by (for example) Stagecoach South, but are in SWT livery.

The TOCs have some sort of department / office / people who plan and organise rail replacement buses. The larger groups' TOCs tend to put this work through their own subsidiary, e.g. First Rail Support - http://www.firstgroup.com/firstrailsupport/index.php, Arriva UK Trains road transport section - http://www.railbyroad.com/

Those rail replacement companies tend to employ bus co-ordinators (who may or may not have other jobs in the transport industry and / or within that group) and they plan services and procure buses and coaches to run rail replacement services. They may do this via other subsidiaries of the same group, they may go elsewhere - I have seen First London vehicles (when such things existed) on FCC work, I have also seen a variety of coach operators and Abelio London, but I can't recall seeing First Berkshire running around Reading, though.

Go-Ahead do it slightly differently in that the planning for Southern / South Eastern is done by Go-Ahead London (bus company) and they tend to use their own buses (and Metrobus / Brighton & Hove) where possible, sub-contracting whatever work they can't cover.
 
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GaryMcEwan

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Go-Ahead do it slightly differently in that the planning for Southern / South Eastern is done by First London (bus company) and they tend to use their own buses (and Metrobus / Brighton & Hove) where possible, sub-contracting whatever work they can't cover.

I thought First London ceased operations in July 2013?
 

ECML180

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I think they are getting rarer, but I've seen buses running in Asda livery - again the vehicle is owned and operated by a particular bus company.

Then there's people like Doncaster College who decided to set up a bus company with a single solo instead of contract it out!
 

edwin_m

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Then there's people like Doncaster College who decided to set up a bus company with a single solo instead of contract it out!

I believe there is a newish law which says anyone who provides bus travel as part of a service they charge for is caught by various rules and regulations that apply to bus companies. This is probably because the Government thought that someone would run a bus service while pretending to be something else entirely. It catches things like hotel courtesy buses which are probably now likely to be contracted out if they weren't already.
 
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Back in the 1990s a Yorkshire Rider volvo coach was liveried in GNER blue - this was mainly for a dedicated link Bradford-Wakefield though.

wasn't there also a GNER branded Lincoln- NNG (road) coach as well ...
 

trentside

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wasn't there also a GNER branded Lincoln- NNG (road) coach as well ...

Yes, it was operated by Travel Wright of Newark on behalf of GNER.

Dunn-Line later tried a similar service, without route branding - but it didn't last long.
 
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