Chester’s City Sightseeing service, which is operated by Stagecoach Merseyside and South Lancashire (M&SL), has been recognised for its high standards of quality and the role it plays in helping to boost tourism in the area with an official Quality Assured Tour accreditation by the national tourist board, Visit England.
Established in 2002, the hop-on-hop-off tour bus takes passengers to the city’s tourism hotspots including the Roman Amphitheatre, River Dee and Anglican Cathedral.
Since it acquired the operation from FirstGroup in 2013, Stagecoach has witnessed strong growth. There has been a 4% increase in the number of users during the peak summer season and an 18% increase over the off-peak months.
Over the past year, Stagecoach has also made significant investment in dedicated sightseeing fleet. This includes replacing the former fleet of 26year-old ECW-bodied Leyland Olympians with newer Dennis Trident low-floor double-deckers, making the service fully accessible.
Elisabeth Tasker, MD of Stagecoach MS&L, said: “We’re delighted to see the continued success of our sightseeing buses. Our strong performance figures show that visitors are continuing to rise, with tourists enjoying the full package that we help to provide. To have our services recognised by the tourism board is fantastic and is testament to our team’s hard work and their real focus on giving our passengers the best possible experience during their tour.”
