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Merseybus
Merseybus was a bus operator running bus and coach services predominantly in and around Merseyside, England. Based at Edge Lane, Liverpool, Merseybus was formed as an "arm's length" operation of the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive (Merseyside PTE) out of its bus operations following bus deregulation in Great Britain and was later sold to Merseybus management and staff in a £5.9 million Employee Share Ownership Plan in 1993, forming the core of MTL's bus operations. Merseybus was subsequently sold alongside all MTL operations to Arriva on 17 February 2000, and operations today trade under Arriva North West.
In advance of the deregulation of local bus and coach services on 26 October 1986, which ordered the break-up of the passenger transport executives of the United Kingdom, Merseyside PTE's bus operations, branded as 'Merseyside Transport', were transferred to a new company named Merseybus, operated at arm's length with a majority shareholding by Merseyside PTE's replacement, the Merseyside Passenger Transport Authority.
Merseybus encompassed the following depots and divisions of Merseyside Transport:
Liverpool's Prince Alfred Road (Penny Lane), Litherland and Wallasey's Seaview Road depots were not transferred to Merseybus and remained with Merseyside PTE, ultimately being sold for redevelopment. Prior to this, Merseyside PTE used these depots to store 'non-standard' vehicles Merseybus did not take on.[citation needed]
When deregulation took effect and Merseybus commenced operations on 26 October 1986, some services across the Merseyside area saw reduced bus frequencies as a result of the introduction of new timetables, as well as fare rises ranging from between 55% and 150%. Buses initially maintained the 'green and cream' livery of Merseyside Transport, albeit with new Merseybus logos applied over Merseyside PTE logos, later replaced by a new Merseybus livery scheme of maroon and cream in 1988, following a public trial of livery proposals in the Southport Division.
In the first years of deregulation, Merseybus invested in minibuses through its Merseymini arm and reduced fares on certain services in attempts to compete with new independent bus operators within their operating area, including Fareway Passenger Services, Topway and Liverline, who threatened to report Merseybus to the Office of Fair Trading for unfair competition. Despite this sustained competition, Merseybus turned its first operating profit of £300,000 (equivalent to £1,016,000 in 2023) in December 1988 following a series of company investments. By early 1989, however, this profit had turned into a £40 million (equivalent to £125,699,000 in 2023) loss as a result of Merseybus losing out on subsidised Merseytravel services to independent bus operators. To save £3 million (equivalent to £9,427,000 in 2023) in costs, 350 job losses were undertaken, while it was proposed to merge the North and South Liverpool divisions through the closure of Walton (North) and Garston (South) depots; Garston depot, however, did not close as a result of these spending cuts.
Following deregulation, majority shareholder Merseyside PTA, later rebranded to Merseytravel, did not immediately sell Merseybus into privatisation. Merseybus was therefore one of four former PTE and several former municipal operators in 1989 to be ordered to submit privatisation plans to Secretary of State for Transport Paul Channon, who would determine if companies should be split under section 61 of the Transport Act 1985 to enable their sale.
Despite Merseytravel's resistance, negotiations between the authority and a collective of 1,200 Merseybus employees and management towards an Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP) commenced around this time. In what was viewed by bidding employees as an attempt to derail a deal for the ESOP, Merseytravel introduced the £9.70 (equivalent to £25 in 2023) Solo all-week ticket in March 1992 in partnership with 29 other independent bus operators on Merseyside. The Solo ticket was not accepted on commercially operated Merseybus services, despite it being conditional to pursue the ESOP, as it directly competed with the company's £7.95 (equivalent to £21 in 2023) SuperSaver all-week ticket launched a year prior.
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Merseybus
Merseybus was a bus operator running bus and coach services predominantly in and around Merseyside, England. Based at Edge Lane, Liverpool, Merseybus was formed as an "arm's length" operation of the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive (Merseyside PTE) out of its bus operations following bus deregulation in Great Britain and was later sold to Merseybus management and staff in a £5.9 million Employee Share Ownership Plan in 1993, forming the core of MTL's bus operations. Merseybus was subsequently sold alongside all MTL operations to Arriva on 17 February 2000, and operations today trade under Arriva North West.
In advance of the deregulation of local bus and coach services on 26 October 1986, which ordered the break-up of the passenger transport executives of the United Kingdom, Merseyside PTE's bus operations, branded as 'Merseyside Transport', were transferred to a new company named Merseybus, operated at arm's length with a majority shareholding by Merseyside PTE's replacement, the Merseyside Passenger Transport Authority.
Merseybus encompassed the following depots and divisions of Merseyside Transport:
Liverpool's Prince Alfred Road (Penny Lane), Litherland and Wallasey's Seaview Road depots were not transferred to Merseybus and remained with Merseyside PTE, ultimately being sold for redevelopment. Prior to this, Merseyside PTE used these depots to store 'non-standard' vehicles Merseybus did not take on.[citation needed]
When deregulation took effect and Merseybus commenced operations on 26 October 1986, some services across the Merseyside area saw reduced bus frequencies as a result of the introduction of new timetables, as well as fare rises ranging from between 55% and 150%. Buses initially maintained the 'green and cream' livery of Merseyside Transport, albeit with new Merseybus logos applied over Merseyside PTE logos, later replaced by a new Merseybus livery scheme of maroon and cream in 1988, following a public trial of livery proposals in the Southport Division.
In the first years of deregulation, Merseybus invested in minibuses through its Merseymini arm and reduced fares on certain services in attempts to compete with new independent bus operators within their operating area, including Fareway Passenger Services, Topway and Liverline, who threatened to report Merseybus to the Office of Fair Trading for unfair competition. Despite this sustained competition, Merseybus turned its first operating profit of £300,000 (equivalent to £1,016,000 in 2023) in December 1988 following a series of company investments. By early 1989, however, this profit had turned into a £40 million (equivalent to £125,699,000 in 2023) loss as a result of Merseybus losing out on subsidised Merseytravel services to independent bus operators. To save £3 million (equivalent to £9,427,000 in 2023) in costs, 350 job losses were undertaken, while it was proposed to merge the North and South Liverpool divisions through the closure of Walton (North) and Garston (South) depots; Garston depot, however, did not close as a result of these spending cuts.
Following deregulation, majority shareholder Merseyside PTA, later rebranded to Merseytravel, did not immediately sell Merseybus into privatisation. Merseybus was therefore one of four former PTE and several former municipal operators in 1989 to be ordered to submit privatisation plans to Secretary of State for Transport Paul Channon, who would determine if companies should be split under section 61 of the Transport Act 1985 to enable their sale.
Despite Merseytravel's resistance, negotiations between the authority and a collective of 1,200 Merseybus employees and management towards an Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP) commenced around this time. In what was viewed by bidding employees as an attempt to derail a deal for the ESOP, Merseytravel introduced the £9.70 (equivalent to £25 in 2023) Solo all-week ticket in March 1992 in partnership with 29 other independent bus operators on Merseyside. The Solo ticket was not accepted on commercially operated Merseybus services, despite it being conditional to pursue the ESOP, as it directly competed with the company's £7.95 (equivalent to £21 in 2023) SuperSaver all-week ticket launched a year prior.