GHA Coaches news

[northwichcat]

As previously mentioned in the High Peak thread GHA Coaches have registered the 27 Macclesfield-Knutsford service that High Peak cancelled the registration for.

Although, there seems to be conflicting information about this route. It appeared on the GHA Coaches site as a new GHA service, but now has changed to a new Vale Travel service.

Also GHA stated on their Facebook page that it is a Cheshire East contracted service so the fares will be set by Cheshire East Council. However, Cheshire East Council have told the Knutsford Guardian and Knutsford Town Council that when they invited bids for a contracted service they supplied GHA with the passenger loading figures for the previous 27 service but GHA registered a commercial service with less buses than the current High Peak commercial service.

Also GHA told the Knutsford Guardian that they plan to expand further in Cheshire and have plans to open a new depot in Winsford.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

GHA Coaches seem to wish to strengthen their Cheshire services and seem to be now looking at taking over part-contracts from established users, such as their taking over from Arriva, the Monday to Friday evening services on the 6E service (Shavington-Crewe-Leighton Hospital).

Their "Vale of Llangollen Coaches" division seems to keep its "Vale Travel" name and their new P1 service covering Hazel Grove- Poynton-Middlewood is a local service which provides a link between the different railway lines that pass through both Hazel Grove station and Poynton station.

 

[northwichcat]

I wonder given the size of the operations whether one of the giant operators like Stagecoach will be interested in taking them over.

Given the structure of GHA includes multiple registered companies and multiple operating licences it would make it easy for it to go down the Yorkshire Traction route where Stagecoach took over the operations but then sold part of the operations to a Centrebus/Arriva consortium.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

I wonder given the size of the operations whether one of the giant operators like Stagecoach will be interested in taking them over.

Given the structure of GHA includes multiple registered companies and multiple operating licences it would make it easy for it to go down the Yorkshire Traction route where Stagecoach took over the operations but then sold part of the operations to a Centrebus/Arriva consortium.

Besides the Vale of Llangollen side (that currently use Vale Travel), there is another one of the acquired companies that also keep autonomy of name and that is Bryn Melyn Coaches, that have services to Wrexham, Llangollen, Oswestry and Shrewsbury. I think that these two are the only ones now not to use the G.H.A. title.

Do you see any similarities to the Crosville Motor Services group when the areas of North East Wales and the two local authority administered areas of Cheshire are looked at. I can see some difficulty in the takeover that you mention, unless you were thinking of Arriva rather than Stagecoach or First, with the strength of Arriva in the North Wales area.

G.H.A. Coaches have certainly have expanded since their beginnings back in 1990, but not in an ad-hoc manner, but with their operational areas very much in mind. Expansion seems to be a gradual process that is based on the extension of previously held boundaries.

 

[northwichcat]

Do you see any similarities to the Crosville Motor Services group when the areas of North East Wales and the two local authority administered areas of Cheshire are looked at. I can see some difficulty in the takeover that you mention, unless you were thinking of Arriva rather than Stagecoach or First, with the strength of Arriva in the North Wales area.

I doubt First would want to buy them considering they've just sold their Chester operations.

Would there be any issues with Stagecoach Merseyside buying them and then putting the service that cross in to the Stagecoach Manchester area in to 'Vale Travel' e.g. the 130, 88 and 200 routes, some of the southern routes in to 'Bryn Melyn' and then the rest in to 'GHA' to keep and then selling off Vale Travel and Bryn Melyn? That wouldn't be dis-similar to what they did with Yorkshire Traction, except for their being 2 sell offs instead of 1.

Remember Arriva now own both the part of Crossville that went to the new North Western Road Car Co and the part that stayed under Crossville in Wales but have 'Arriva North West' and 'Arriva Wales.'

I'm only suggesting a takeover could happen because it seems to have happened with most other largish bus companies. Centrebus are probably one of the few that it's not happened to but that may be difficult given they own 50% of High Peak and 60% of Huddersfield Bus Company. Also their operations spread from West Yorkshire to Hertfordshire, so aren't someone who Arriva, for instance, can buy and merge in to their Leicester operations.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Have you any knowledge as to how G.H.A. Coaches are perceived by the respective public transport sections of Cheshire East Council ?

 

[Polarbear]

GHA have been expanding their Cheshire operations for some time now. As well as the additional work they have been acquiring in Cheshire East, they have increased frequencies on several routes in Cheshire West also, (routes 36 Ellesmere Port - Runcorn & 82 Chester - Northwich being two examples)

I understand that Stagecoach have previously shown interest in buying GHA but have been politely turned down each time. Sorry, I've nothing concrete to substantiate that, but my source is usually reliable.

Now that Stagecoach have a presence in Chester & Wrexham, my personal opinion is that it may just be a matter of time until an offer is made that GHA may not be able to refuse? It would certainly give Stagecoach a reasonably sized network in Cheshire & NE Wales?

 

[northwichcat]

I understand that Stagecoach have previously shown interest in buying GHA but have been politely turned down each time. Sorry, I've nothing concrete to substantiate that, but my source is usually reliable.

Now that Stagecoach have a presence in Chester & Wrexham, my personal opinion is that it may just be a matter of time until an offer is made that GHA may not be able to refuse? It would certainly give Stagecoach a reasonably sized network in Cheshire & NE Wales?

Given the size of GHA I'd be surprised if there hadn't been interest off larger companies relating to a takeover deal.

When Stagecoach have taken interests in operator takeovers before and the other party isn't interested it's not usually resulted in a good end result.

In the past it's resulted in bus wars between Stagecoach and the other operator on the most profitable routes. Or in areas where Stagecoach don't already operate in a mysterious new company being set up running modern buses and offering low fares on 'new routes' that are very similar to existing routes, with the mysterious company actually being a Stagecoach subsidiary which gets Stagecoach branding and drops the low fares once other the other operator has withdrawn competing services.

 

[northwichcat]

Just noticed this update on their website:

Cheshire West Rural Services, run by Vale of Llangollen Travel, namely the C88 (Monday only) and 38 (Monday only) will be cancelled and no longer operate. Services C87 (Friday only) and C89 (Wednesday only) will now be registered to GHA Coaches but remain otherwise unchanged.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

I understand that Stagecoach have previously shown interest in buying GHA but have been politely turned down each time. Sorry, I've nothing concrete to substantiate that, but my source is usually reliable.

Is there any updated news on this matter from your source?

--- old post above --- --- new post below ---


With regard to the earlier posting about the termination of the Monday only C88 Monday service that served Tiverton-Utkinton-Tarporley-Eaton-Northwich, what were the loadings on that service. I am interested how many passengers boarded and disembarked at Tiverton terminus on that part of that route, as the village population there is around the 400 mark.


Incidentally, what are the loadings like at the Ottersbank terminus of the Wednesday only C89 service that serves Ottersbank-Utkinton-Tarporley-Eaton-Northwich.

 

[Polarbear]

Is there any updated news on this matter from your source?

No, I've not heard anything else recently I'm afraid.