Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan

[Wright Eclipse]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester

(10/05/2014 23:27)Polo Mint Wrote:  It is beyond me why Stagecoach were allowed to buy Bullocks and Maynes when they competed in the same territory. Now with the 217/218 being axed Stagecoach don't operate any ex-Mayne routes and smaller communities have lost their link to Manchester, if the services had being bought by First for example they may have provided a little more competition into Manchester. Purchasing Bullocks also allowed Stagecoach to be even larger in the Stockport area.

231 is Ex-Maynes isnt it?,plus most places that lost there link to manchester have frequent enough connections at Ashton into Manchester. As for the stockport area they hardly have it bad, Modern fleet with Enviro400,E400H,Solos & new Enviro200s to replace ALX300s

[M60lad]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester
Regarding what you said about 217/218 being axed, yes the full route and 218 service has been axed but Stagecoach still operate the evening tendered 217 Manchester-Droylsden service which seems to be operated out of Hyde Road Depot as on Friday evening I spotted one of their Hybris on it.

Also as far as former Maynes routes are concerned apart from the evening 217s which I've just mentioned don't forget that Stagecoach operate the former Maynes 171 route and have done since they took over Mayne's services

[joe_alker]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester
The 231 can't really be called an ex-Mayne route - the 2008 version ran to Littlemoss only and the 232-5 covered the Carrbrook/Hartshead/Mossley areas while the 230 competed with the 168/9 between Droylsden and Ashton.

[Mayneway]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester

(11/05/2014 09:24)Dentonian Wrote:  Bullocks and Maynes both wanted to sell their bus ops and Stagecoach presumably offered the best price. What do you suggest? Small businesses being forced to sell to whoever the OFT/CMA fancy, at a financial loss - or just cease trading and get nothing!
217/8, as with parts of 232-5 before them, were tendered services, due to lack of patronage. Fares wise, Stagecoach was also the best deal for passengers as Maynes had no daily/weekly tickets, and at that time First "off-bus" tickets were about 50% higher than Stagecoach's. Besides, why don't private cars, cycles, taxis, Metrolink and (in some areas) heavily subsidised local rail, represent enough competition?!!!

In the last few years Maynes actually ran a promotional 'Tameside return' ticket which Stagecoach actually continued to sell for a good few months after the sale.

[SF07]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester
38 PDF timetable on Stagecoach's website. Does show that the service will terminate/start on Wilmslow Road opposite Whitworth Park rather than MRI grounds. Similar arrangement to when First started the 18 cross-city extension.

http://www.stagecoachbus.com/pdfs/XJAO038.pdf

[R971XVM]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester
19506 & 19495 branded up for the forthcoming 38 route. Also one other one but unable to ID it...

[Wright Eclipse]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester

(12/05/2014 21:42)R971XVM Wrote:  19506 & 19495 branded up for the forthcoming 38 route. Also one other one but unable to ID it...

Any photos yet of the branding? im guessing its similer to the 76 Branding

[R971XVM]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester
See attached...

[WhiteVanMan]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester

(10/05/2014 23:27)Polo Mint Wrote:  It is beyond me why Stagecoach were allowed to buy Bullocks and Maynes when they competed in the same territory.

That's the very point, that I was making a couple weeks ago.

Unfortunately, A number of people thought I was wrong for bring it up, and accuse me of being anti stagecoach, which I am not. There appear to be a number of people who thinks its OK for stagecoach to buy-out or take-over other companies, but as soon as First, took-over Finglands, they are claiming foul play, and that it should not be allowed.

[mbonwick]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester
Nobody accused First of foul play, all they said was that the Finglands takeover was likely in response to Stagecoac's aquisition of Bluebird.