Aintree Coachline / Helms of Eastham

[YK53 GXO]

RE: Aintree Coachline / Helms of Eastham

(28/04/2017 22:29)iMarkeh Wrote:  I know shunt buses dont need a permit. Only buses on service trips need them. What is the point in them asking for the operating centres and how many vehicles will operate from there? Their O Licence only has 12 vehicles from Hooton so only 12 on service trips meaning 6 buses are there only for spares or shuttle

All buses that operate for the company on public roads for the purpose of business or trade require a Section 22 permit O-License. This includes shunt buses. Any bus operating for the company, whether in service or not, requires a valid Operator License showing on the vehicle.

Also, the shunt buses for the day tend to be the buses that operate the schools in the morning, then get shunted down to Ellesmere Port or Chester for a driver change at around 2pm, meaning that they can go straight to the school instead of having to go back to the depot. This, in most cases, significantly reduces the PVR for the company.

The operating centre is mainly only to state where that buses main office is based. The actual location of the bus when out of use can vary, hence why there is no specific address on the O-License disc. For example, Trident AW04 XCK can be operated under the PC0003713 license from the Eastham garage every day, but it's main operating centre is actually Aintree garage. This is what is known as storing a bus in an 'outstation' to where the vehicle is registered to for practical reasons. Where buses are stored overnight does not directly have to be their operating centre on the corresponding companies O-License.