Stagecoach West recently celebrated its 30-year anniversary, having been formed out of the takeover of Western Travel. Richard Sharman takes a pictorial look back over the last few decades
Western Travel was a company born out of the bus deregulation era, which took effect from 26 October 1986. The company taken over by its management to form this new group was the Cheltenham & Gloucester Omnibus Company, previously owned by the National Bus Company and established to encompass the depots at Cheltenham, Gloucester, Stroud and Swindon.
Bold and bright new liveries and identities were designed to move the company away from its previous connection with the National Bus Company. Of note is that Western Travel later went on to acquire Midland Red South, Red & White Services and Circle-Line of Gloucester.
Stagecoach was in the middle of a buying spree, and Western Travel became the third operator to be added to Sir Brian Souter’s portfolio in as many weeks for the price of £9.25m on 26 November 1993. It followed on from the group also taking over East Kent and Grimsby Cleethorpes Transport.
Talking about buying Western Travel at the time, Sir Brian Souter said: “We are particularly pleased about getting a presence in an area where we have not been previously.”
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