Number of companies present and pre privatisation

[delt1c]

How many companies are there running our bus services now as compared to pre privatisation. If we class the Scottish Bus Group and National as 2 companies. Then take National express arriva etc as single companies are there more or less post privatisation

 

[RT4038]

How many companies are there running our bus services now as compared to pre privatisation. If we class the Scottish Bus Group and National as 2 companies. Then take National express arriva etc as single companies are there more or less post privatisation

Are you counting each Municipal Transport Department as one 'company' ?

 

[peterblue]

How many companies are there running our bus services now as compared to pre privatisation. If we class the Scottish Bus Group and National as 2 companies. Then take National express arriva etc as single companies are there more or less post privatisation

It very much depends what you define as a 'bus company'. Do operators running school-only, or other private hire, services count? Do coaching operators like NX, Megabus, Flixbus count? Do subsidiaries of bus companies count as separate companies, or part of the same company?

In Scotland, to reuse your example, bustimes.org lists 164 bus operators. However, this figure is quite large as it counts subsidiaries as separate (e.g. Stagecoach Highland, Stagecoach West Scotland) and it includes a lot of very small operators who only run the occasional school service.

Source: https://bustimes.org/regions/S

 

[delt1c]

It very much depends what you define as a 'bus company'. Do operators running school-only, or other private hire, services count? Do coaching operators like NX, Megabus, Flixbus count? Do subsidiaries of bus companies count as separate companies, or part of the same company?

In Scotland, to reuse your example, bustimes.org lists 164 bus operators. However, this figure is quite large as it counts subsidiaries as separate (e.g. Stagecoach Highland, Stagecoach West Scotland) and it includes a lot of very small operators who only run the occasional school service.

Source: https://bustimes.org/regions/

Not counting subsidiaries as separate and not counting small company doing school only runs. Talking about companies operating advertised Normal routes.

 

[GusB]

The concept of the thread is a little confusing because subsidiaries of large groups are companies in their own right.

If you're purely talking about groups, then obviously you're going to have more than you did under nationalisation. Those that I can think of are:

• Stagecoach
• First
• Arriva
• Go Ahead
• Transdev
• National Express
• West Coast Motors
• McGills
• Diamond Bus

I've definitely missed a few off that list. Then you've got the larger independent operators.

 

[Simon75]

I am a bit confused too, but hopefully add these

Wellglade (TrentBarton)
Centrebus (D&G and Chaseride), also High Peak

The concept of the thread is a little confusing because subsidiaries of large groups are companies in their own right.

If you're purely talking about groups, then obviously you're going to have more than you did under nationalisation. Those that I can think of are:

• Stagecoach
• First
• Arriva
• Go Ahead
• Transdev
• National Express
• West Coast Motors
• McGills
• Diamond Bus

I've definitely missed a few off that list. Then you've got the larger independent operators.

 

[317 forever]

As far as I can tell, the privatisations of NBC, SBG, the PTCs, LBL and all but 8 municipals, followed by many acquisitions and a few divestments, have basically condensed the privatised bus industry into 16 companies.

The ones not yet listed are

Comfort DelGro
RATP / Kelsian (I list them together as RATP's other interests are the non-mainstream Sightseeing companies, while Kelsian no longer have any operations of their own in Britain)
Uno
Midland Classic
Yellow Buses (but for how long?).

I exclude independents who have emerged, coach companies who have diversified into bus operation, and purchasers of non-privatised operations. A case in point here is Abellio, who now own what started out as Connex Bus and Tellings Golden Miller for example but were not part of LBL or London Country.

 

[Busaholic]

As far as I can tell, the privatisations of NBC, SBG, the PTCs, LBL and all but 8 municipals, followed by many acquisitions and a few divestments, have basically condensed the privatised bus industry into 16 companies.

The ones not yet listed are

Comfort DelGro
RATP / Kelsian (I list them together as RATP's other interests are the non-mainstream Sightseeing companies, while Kelsian no longer have any operations of their own in Britain)
Uno
Midland Classic
Yellow Buses (but for how long?).

I exclude independents who have emerged, coach companies who have diversified into bus operation, and purchasers of non-privatised operations. A case in point here is Abellio, who now own what started out as Connex Bus and Tellings Golden Miller for example but were not part of LBL or London Country.

I thought RATP owned Yellow Buses?

 

[Cesarcollie]

As far as I can tell, the privatisations of NBC, SBG, the PTCs, LBL and all but 8 municipals, followed by many acquisitions and a few divestments, have basically condensed the privatised bus industry into 16 companies.

The ones not yet listed are

Comfort DelGro
RATP / Kelsian (I list them together as RATP's other interests are the non-mainstream Sightseeing companies, while Kelsian no longer have any operations of their own in Britain)
Uno
Midland Classic
Yellow Buses (but for how long?).

I exclude independents who have emerged, coach companies who have diversified into bus operation, and purchasers of non-privatised operations. A case in point here is Abellio, who now own what started out as Connex Bus and Tellings Golden Miller for example but were not part of LBL or London Country.

im not sure that’s really a comprehensive list. Depends how small you go. But Nu Venture, Borderbus, Stephensons, NIBS Buses, Ensign, Sanders, Lynx (I could go on) spring to mind just in the eastern area. And some of these aren’t small!

 

[Deerfold]

I thought RATP owned Yellow Buses?

Establishing a secure connection ...

18th July 2019

NEWS

RATP Dev has sold its Yellow Buses and Yellow Coaches business in Bournemouth to a threestrong management buyout led by managing director David Squire.

 

[Busaholic]

Establishing a secure connection ...

Must have been an issue of Buses I never got round to reading thoroughly (either that or faulty memory.)

 

[317 forever]

im not sure that’s really a comprehensive list. Depends how small you go. But Nu Venture, Borderbus, Stephensons, NIBS Buses, Ensign, Sanders, Lynx (I could go on) spring to mind just in the eastern area. And some of these aren’t small!

You are right about all those independents and more. These independents generally entered the bus scene through new ventures, tenders, or commercial replacements for services dropped by established operators. My own list there - which this week has of course dropped from 16 to 14 - is just ownership of mainstream privatised bus operations following substantial acquisitions and a few divestments.