JP Travel, sometimes known as JPT or Jpt Bus Company, is a bus company based at Middleton

Middleton, Greater Manchester

Middleton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Irk, south-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester...

 in Greater Manchester

Greater Manchester

Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...

, England. The company is owned by Janet and Peter Walsh and runs local services in the North Manchester area. The JP in JP Travel forms the initials of their first names.

History

The company started trading in 1974, entering the bus market in 1987. A small network of services began to form during the latter part of the 1980s under the name of "City Nippy", with the following routes being introduced within 12 months of commencing bus operations:

• 12 Middleton - Moorclose
• 62 Middleton - Moston
• 129 Middleton - Boarshaw
• 130 Langley - Middleton - Crumpsall
• 131 Middleton - Manchester
• 132 Middleton - Langley
• 133 Middleton - Alkrington

Since then, a network of services has developed across Manchester. Whilst concentrating on north Manchester, the company has gained a presence in the southern area through gaining GMPTE tenders. In the past few years, expansion through this means has taken as far as Farnworth and Stockport.

An attempt to reroute service 162 to miss out North Manchester General Hospital

North Manchester General Hospital

North Manchester General Hospital is a large NHS hospital located in Crumpsall in the north of the English city of Manchester. It is operated as part of the Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust....

 met opposition from residents in the Alkrington

Alkrington

Alkrington Garden Village, more commonly known as Alkrington, is a suburb of Middleton, in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England....

 area. The decision was reversed and the route was instead diverted to serve more of the Alkrington estate.

In 2007, they took over the services then operated by Ashall's Coaches

Ashall's Coaches

Ashall's Coaches is an independent coach hire operator which previously operated local bus services in Bury, Middleton and from Urmston to Wythenshawe....

 and have since taken over the routes of the former operator, Vale Of Manchester. The company has a fleet of 35 vehicles and claims to be "one of Manchester's leading independent operators."

The company has been one of the innovators in the use of social media

Social media

The term Social Media refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into an interactive dialogue. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0,...

, advertising a Facebook

Facebook

Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...

 page at which customers can communicate with the operator. Buses carry a logo advising passengers to "become a fan of Jpt Bus Company" by joining the Facebook site.. They have now also launched their new website, link at bottom.

Another innovation occurred in 2009, when the operator became the first on service 343, between Oldham

Oldham

Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amid the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers Irk and Medlock, south-southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of the city of Manchester...

, Mossley

Mossley

Mossley is a small town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, in Greater Manchester, England. The town is located in the upper section of the Tame valley in the foothills of the Pennines, northeast of Ashton-under-Lyne and east of Manchester.Mossley has the distinction of...

 and Hyde

Hyde, Greater Manchester

Hyde is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2001 census, the town had a population of 31,253. Historically part of Cheshire, it is northeast of Stockport, west of Glossop and east of Manchester....

, to operate low floor buses. As part of a summer promotion, in August 2009 the company halved the cost of its weekly season ticket

Season ticket

A season ticket is a ticket that grants privileges over a defined period of time.-Sport:In sport, a season ticket grants the holder access to all regular-season home games for one season without additional charges. The ticket usually offers a discounted price over purchasing a ticket for each of...

 from £10.00 to £5.00, at a time when competing major operators were cutting back on services.

In October 2009 the company was awarded the contracts for five new services in North Manchester and received a loan of £250,000 to buy new low-floor vehicles for the routes.

In January 2011, JP Travel had announced that its sister company Eurobus, had purchased local coach firm known as Ellenbrook Travel, originally based in Worsley

Worsley

Worsley is a town in the metropolitan borough of the City of Salford, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies along the course of Worsley Brook, west of Manchester. The M60 motorway bisects the area....

, Manchester

Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...

. Eurobus began operating on Route 17 as of the 15th of May 2011, effectively competing against First Manchester on that route. Five former Stagecoach Alexander ALX200

Alexander ALX200

The Alexander ALX200 was a midibus body built by Alexander of the United Kingdom. It was one of the ALX-series, which accounted for 5 different models , built for new generation bus chassis produced since late 1990s.It was designed by John Worker, and was launched in summer...

-bodied Volvo B6LE are used, running alongside JPT on a coordinated timetable. The Eurobus vehicles share the exact same colour scheme (except for the Eurobus logo) as JPT and are based at the same address.

Routes

Most of JP Travel's routes are concentrated in and around North Manchester, mainly Middleton. In recent years, this has included some tendered operations on behalf of Transport for Greater Manchester.

No.	From	To	Via	Notes
17	Rochdale Rochdale Rochdale is a large market town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the foothills of the Pennines on the River Roch, north-northwest of Oldham, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester. Rochdale is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan...	Manchester Manchester Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...  Shudehill	Castleton Castleton, Greater Manchester Castleton is an area of Rochdale and an electoral ward of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. It is south-southwest of Rochdale town centre and north-northwest of the city of Manchester.... , Middleton, Harpurhey Harpurhey -Landmarks:Harpurhey Edwardian Swimming Baths, situated on Rochdale Road was built between 1909-10 by Henry Price, Manchester's first City Architect. Listed grade II in, the baths were closed to the public in 2001 after serious defects were discovered and the entrance building is currently being...	Rochdale-Manchester runs Monday-Saturday evenings. Some journeys run Castleton/Slattocks-Manchester All other journeys run Middleton-Manchester only Extra journeys run by Eurobus
31	Farnworth Farnworth Farnworth is within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. It is located southeast of Bolton, 6 miles south-west of Bury , and northwest of Manchester....	Manchester Shudehill	Little Hulton Little Hulton Little Hulton is a village—effectively a suburb—within the City of Salford, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies south of Bolton, west-northwest of Salford, and west-northwest of Manchester... , Walkden Walkden Walkden is a town within the metropolitan borough of the City of Salford, in Greater Manchester, England. It is west-northwest of Salford, and west-northwest of Manchester.... , Pendleton Pendleton, Greater Manchester Pendleton is an inner city area of Salford, Greater Manchester, England. It is about from Manchester city centre. The A6 dual carriageway skirts the east of the district....
54	Belle Vue	Trafford Centre Trafford Centre The Trafford Centre is a large indoor shopping centre and leisure complex situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford in Greater Manchester, close to the Trafford Park industrial estate and approximately 5 miles from Manchester city centre. It is the highest valued shopping centre in the...	Rusholme Rusholme -Etymology:Rusholme, unlike other areas of Manchester which have '-holme' in the place name is not a true '-holme'. Its name came from ryscum, which is the dative plural of Old English rysc "rush": "[at the] rushes"... , Old Trafford Old Trafford Old Trafford commonly refers to two sporting arenas:* Old Trafford, home of Manchester United F.C.* Old Trafford Cricket Ground, home of Lancashire County Cricket ClubOld Trafford can also refer to:... , Trafford Park Trafford Park Trafford Park is an area of the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, England. Located opposite Salford Quays, on the southern side of the Manchester Ship Canal, it is west-southwest of Manchester city centre, and north of Stretford. Until the late 19th century it was the...	Early weekday mornings only
88 89	Manchester Piccadilly	Manchester Shudehill	Monsall, White Moss, Higher Blackley, North Manchester General Hospital, Cheetham Hill	Evenings and Sundays only
118	North Manchester General Hospital North Manchester General Hospital North Manchester General Hospital is a large NHS hospital located in Crumpsall in the north of the English city of Manchester. It is operated as part of the Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust....	Manchester Piccadilly	White Moss (not to/from Moston), Harpurhey
	Moston Gardeners Arms
129	Middleton	Middleton	Hollin, Stannycliffe	Grasshopper service. Circular
156	Langley Langley, Greater Manchester Langley is an area of Middleton in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England. Created as a Manchester overspill estate in the 1950s and 60s, it is south-southwest of Rochdale and north-northeast of Manchester City Centre.Langley as a district pushes down into Middleton as...	Manchester Shudehill	Middleton, Heaton Park Heaton Park Heaton Park, covering an area variously reported as , 247 hectares, , over and is the biggest park in Greater Manchester, England and one of the biggest municipal parks in Europe. The park comprises the grounds of a Grade I listed, neoclassical 18th century country house, Heaton Hall... , Collyhurst Collyhurst Collyhurst is a locality in Manchester. It is 1½ miles northeast of Manchester city centre, on Rochdale Road and Oldham Road. The River Irk passes through the area...	Most journeys run Middleton-Manchester only
159	Middleton	Woodhouses	New Moston	One weekday morning journey
164 165	Heywood Heywood, Greater Manchester Heywood is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the south bank of the River Roch and is east of Bury, west-southwest of Rochdale, and north of the city of Manchester. The town of Middleton lies to the south, whilst to the north is the...  (164)	Manchester Shudehill	Hollin (164), Middleton (164), Heaton Park, Dam Head, Harpurhey (164), Collyhurst	Evenings/Sundays only
169	Ashton-under-Lyne Ashton-under-Lyne Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it lies on the north bank of the River Tame, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines...	Southern Cemetery	Littlemoss, Droylsden Droylsden Droylsden is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, in Greater Manchester, England. It is to the east of Manchester city centre, and west-southwest of Ashton-under-Lyne, it has a population of 23,172.... , Openshaw Openshaw Openshaw is a ward of the city of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, North West England. It lies about two miles east of Manchester city centre. Historically a part of Lancashire, Openshaw was incorporated into the city of Manchester in 1890. Its name derives from the Old English Opinschawe, which... , Gorton Gorton Gorton is an area of the city of Manchester, in North West England. It is located to the southeast of Manchester city centre. Neighbouring areas include Longsight and Levenshulme.... , Belle Vue, Levenshulme Levenshulme Levenshulme is an urban area of the City of Manchester, in North West England. It borders Longsight, Gorton, Burnage, Heaton Chapel and Reddish, and is approximately halfway between Stockport and Manchester City Centre on the A6 road. The A6 bisects Levenshulme. The Manchester to London railway... , West Didsbury	Evenings/Sundays only.
217 218	Manchester Shudehill	Tameside General Hospital Tameside General Hospital Tameside General Hospital is an National Health Service hospital situated in Ashton-under-Lyne. Run by Tameside Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, it serves the surrounding area of Tameside in Greater Manchester, and the town of Glossop in Derbyshire...	Clayton Clayton, Greater Manchester Clayton is a suburb of the city of Manchester, in North West England. It is situated about 3 miles east of the city centre, on Ashton New Road. Clayton takes its name from the Clayton family who owned large parts of land around the area, including Clayton Vale, through which the River Medlock flows... , Droylsden, Audenshaw Audenshaw Audenshaw is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, in Greater Manchester, England. It is located on the east side of the River Tame, along the course of both the M60 motorway and the Ashton Canal, southwest of Ashton-under-Lyne and east of the city of Manchester... , Ashton-under-Lyne	Sunday daytime. 217 from Manchester, 218 to Manchester.
	Stalybridge Stalybridge Stalybridge is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside in Greater Manchester, England, with a population of 22,568. Historically a part of Cheshire, it is east of Manchester city centre and northwest of Glossop. With the construction of a cotton mill in 1776, Stalybridge became one of...	Manchester Shudehill	Dukinfield Dukinfield Dukinfield is a small town within the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies in central Tameside on the south bank of the River Tame, opposite Ashton-under-Lyne, and is east of the city of Manchester... , Audenshaw, Droyslden, Clayton	Sunday daytime. 217 to Manchester, 218 from Manchester
	Droylsden	Manchester Piccadilly	Clayton	Evenings only (217)
245	Flixton Flixton, Greater Manchester Flixton is a village and electoral ward within the Urmston area of the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford in Greater Manchester, England. It lies about six miles to the southwest of Manchester city centre, within the historic county boundaries of Lancashire.Flixton's present-day population is...	Altrincham Altrincham Altrincham is a market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on flat ground south of the River Mersey about southwest of Manchester city centre, south-southwest of Sale and east of Warrington...	Trafford General Hospital, Stretford Stretford Stretford is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, England. Lying on flat ground between the River Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal, it is to the southwest of Manchester city centre, south-southwest of Salford and northeast of Altrincham... , Sale Sale, Greater Manchester Sale is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, England. Historically part of Cheshire, the town lies on flat ground on the south bank of the River Mersey, south of Stretford, northeast of Altrincham, and southwest of the city of Manchester... , Woodheys, Sinderfield (evenings only)	Sundays only
256	Flixton	Manchester Picadilly	Davyhulme, Stretford, Old Trafford, Hulme	Late evenings only
276	Trafford General Hospital	Withington Community Hospital Withington Community Hospital Withington Community Hospital is a hospital in south Manchester, England...	Flixton, Urmston, Stretford, Chorlton Chorlton-cum-Hardy Chorlton-cum-Hardy is a suburban area of the city of Manchester, England. It is known locally as Chorlton. It is situated about four miles southwest of Manchester city centre. Pronunciation varies: and are both common....
335	Ashton-under-Lyne	Denton	Dukinfield, Shepley, Audenshaw (via Cemetery Road)	Circular
343	Oldham	Hyde Hyde, Greater Manchester Hyde is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2001 census, the town had a population of 31,253. Historically part of Cheshire, it is northeast of Stockport, west of Glossop and east of Manchester....	Lees Lees, Greater Manchester The village consists of a small cluster of shops and businesses on either side of the A669 Lees Road, surrounded by some terraced houses and some small estates... , Grotton Grotton Grotton is a relatively wealthy hamlet in Saddleworth, a civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. Grotton is a suburban area located along the A669 road, and forms a continuous urban area with Austerlands and Springhead, which in turn link to Lees and... , Mossley Mossley Mossley is a small town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, in Greater Manchester, England. The town is located in the upper section of the Tame valley in the foothills of the Pennines, northeast of Ashton-under-Lyne and east of Manchester.Mossley has the distinction of... , Stalybridge, Dukinfield	Saturday daytime only
370	Stockport	Altrincham	East Didsbury, Didsbury Didsbury Didsbury is a suburban area of the City of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Mersey, south of Manchester city centre, in the southern half of the Greater Manchester Urban Area... , Northenden Northenden Northenden is a suburban area and electoral ward of the city of Manchester in North West England. It lies on the south side of both the River Mersey and the M60 motorway, west of Stockport and south of Manchester city centre. Northenden is bounded by the districts of Didsbury, Gatley and... , Northern Moor, Baguley, Timperley Timperley Timperley is a village within the Altrincham area, of the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford in Greater Manchester, England. Situated within the historic county boundaries of Cheshire, Timperley is approximately seven miles southwest of Manchester....	Sundays only
406	Oldham	Middleton	Fitton Park, Parkway, Mills Hill	Sundays only
415	Holts Estate	Oldham	Lees, Greenacres Greenacres, Greater Manchester Greenacres , or archaically Greenacres Moor, is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the west side of the River Medlock opposite the village of Lees....	Sunday evenings only