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Good news for McGills here, the OFT has cleared its take-over provisionally without any re4comendastiuons of Arriva Scotland West, saying there may be a threat of major competition from both FirstGRoup and Stagecoach which both sirt on its door so it intends to take no action.

So McGills is quite happy.

Gilesbus1

McGills is effectively just Clydeside under a new name. So a bit pointless to expect any divestment here.

According to Buses, the ex-First London Citaro bendibuses are being used on route 38.

More doom and gloom, even in Sctotland where support for bus services is higher than in England & Wales as McGills look like they are struggling to digest Arriva

Story HERE.

TBH, it should have been expected. Even though the article does not mention it, the acquisition will have put a big dent into those figures and is probably the main reason for the losses due to the additional costs of maintenance and staffing. They should (in theory) return to profit once things settle down but this might take a year or two to do so.

It has been said on other (Scottish) forums that the reason for the loss definitely WAS the cost of the inquiry of take over of Arriva by the OFT at a cost of about £500 000. Hopefully, once they get shut of all the old ex-Arriva stock and bring in newer vehicles, things should improve.

Mal

20x Ex Stagecoach London Dennis Trident/Alexander ALX400 Are due here,purchased from ensignbus

That's good! Get rid of the old Arriva crap!

Mal

(13/10/2012 08:53)Wright Eclipse Wrote: [ -> ]20x Ex Stagecoach London Dennis Trident/Alexander ALX400 Are due here,purchased from ensignbus

Five went north in full McGill's livery last Friday, and another five yesterday.

http://thebuspeople.co.uk/?p=700

Bus operator McGills expands yet again with £3m deal to acquire Dumbarton-based McColl’s

McGill’s, Scotland’s largest privately-owned bus company, today announced that it has agreed a deal to acquire Dumbarton-based Loch Lomond Bus Services Limited for an investment of around £3m.

The acquisition will complete in early December and involves McGill’s purchasing the limited entity, buses and Dumbarton depot of Loch Lomond Buses Services Limited, which trades as McColl’s. All existing McColl’s staff, numbering thirty-five, will be offered continued employment with McGill’s.

Speaking on behalf of the Board, Ralph Roberts, managing director of McGill’s said: “We are delighted to have concluded this deal with McColl’s. The acquisition fits well with our growth targets and expansion plans for McGill’s. From December 10th, McGill’s will operate all existing McColl’s services under the McGill’s name.

“The extension of our network to include Alexandria, Balloch, Helensburgh and Clydebank complements our current service provision in West Dunbartonshire. From 10 December, McGill’s will offer passengers – old and new – access to an extended network on modern, clean, 100% super-low floor buses”.

He continued, “The McColl’s family has operated a quality service in Dunbartonshire for many years, and the company has a well-deserved reputation as one of the local area’s best bus companies. We wish Liam every success for the future.

Liam McColl, commented: “Given the current economic climate, we have decided to focus our efforts on the quality coach hire and school contracts side of our business. We believe that the McGill’s business model will serve our local passengers well. I would like to thank our regular customers for their loyalty over the years.”

This latest acquisition, the first for McGill’s since its purchase of Arriva Scotland West in March of this year, is a clear indication that the ambitious management team has put the recent Competition Commission review to firmly to the back of its mind, and is back on track towards its goal of becoming the foremost independent operator in the Scottish bus market.

The new issue of Route One Magazine (http://www.route-one.net) says that the McGills losses were anticipated and due to "considerable investment" in 2011 and the purchase of a number of operators. They expect a more favourable result for 2012 which will see turnover increase to £35 million (from £15m).