Stagecoach South Midlands
Encyclopedia
Stagecoach in Oxfordshire is the name given to Stagecoach Group
bus
operations in the county of Oxfordshire
, England
. It used to be part of Stagecoach South Midlands along with Stagecoach in Warwickshire until March 2004.
(South) Ltd and Thames Transit
Ltd, both companies acquired by the Stagecoach Group in the 1990s. Legally these companies still exist, with buses in Warwickshire and Banbury still carrying legal lettering for Midland Red (South) Ltd, whilst buses in Oxford (including the Oxford Tube) and Witney are legally lettered for Thames Transit Ltd.
From 1 July 2002, the Oxford and Banbury brands were merged to become Stagecoach in Oxfordshire. Then from 1 March 2004 Stagecoach in Oxfordshire and Stagecoach in Warwickshire
were split to become two entirely separate divisions of Stagecoach Group.
The local buses in Oxford operate in competition with local buses operated by the Oxford Bus Company
. Oxford is one of the few UK cities where such free and unsubsidised competition (as envisaged by the architects of bus deregulation
in the 1980s) still exists. Similarly the Oxford Tube coaches compete with the Oxford Bus Company's Espress service. This unusual level of both service and competition is facilitated by Oxford's status as a prestigious university city, lack of car parking spaces in the city centre, and the consequent large numbers of young, affluent but car-less inhabitants. In 2010 it was announced that a quality contract had been agreed between the two principal bus operators and the County Council leading to joint timetabling and ticketing. A consequence of this partnership was that on 15 July 2010, Stagecoach Oxford began using hybrid
buses on Route 1 (Cowley, Blackbird Leys). Twelve buses of this type, which use battery power with a small Diesel generator, had been delivered by the manufacturers Alexander Dennis
in time for the launch date, with a further fourteen to be delivered to Oxford later in the year.
Stagecoach in Oxfordshire operates four sub-brands, namely: Stagecoach in Oxfordshire, Oxford Tube, and a National Express franchise from Oxford to Luton and Stansted airports (737).
It also operates Route X5
, which is a high frequency inter-urban coach service linking Oxford and Cambridge via Bicester, Buckingham, Milton Keynes, Bedford and St Neots.
The Oxford Tube currently operates a fleet of 26 Van Hool
Astromega double decker coaches with free Wi-Fi internet access and 240V mains power points on board every coach. As of 2009, these replaced the old fleet of 25 Neoplan Skyliner
s. With departures up to every 10 minutes, the service begins at Gloucester Green
coach station in Oxford City Centre, then stops at Queen's Lane
, St Clements
, Brookes University, Headington
Shops, Green Road Roundabout, Thornhill Park & Ride, Lewknor
Turn, Hillingdon
, Shepherd's Bush
, Notting Hill Gate
, Marble Arch
, and finally two stops at Victoria.
There are three express services on Monday to Friday at 0600, 0624, and 0700: these services do not stop at Lewknor, Hillingdon, Shepherd's Bush or Notting Hill Gate.
Electric hybrid buses
, built by Alexander Dennis
with the hybrid mechanism supplied by BAE Systems
, were introduced in July 2010.
:
Also, Oxford depot has out-stations at Bicester
, Chipping Norton and Harwell
.
Stagecoach Group
Stagecoach Group plc is an international transport group operating buses, trains, trams, express coaches and ferries. The group was founded in 1980 by the current chairman, Sir Brian Souter, his sister, Ann Gloag, and her former husband Robin...
bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
operations in the county of Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It used to be part of Stagecoach South Midlands along with Stagecoach in Warwickshire until March 2004.
History
Stagecoach South Midlands was created from Midland RedMidland Red
Midland Red was a bus company which operated in the English Midlands from 1905 to 1981. It was the trading name used by the Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Company , which was renamed Midland Red Omnibus Company in 1974...
(South) Ltd and Thames Transit
Thames Transit
Thames Transit was a bus and coach company which operated in the Oxford area. As well as running a number of local services it also ran a regular service to London called the Oxford Tube. It now carries about fifteen million passengers a year using just under 200 vehicles...
Ltd, both companies acquired by the Stagecoach Group in the 1990s. Legally these companies still exist, with buses in Warwickshire and Banbury still carrying legal lettering for Midland Red (South) Ltd, whilst buses in Oxford (including the Oxford Tube) and Witney are legally lettered for Thames Transit Ltd.
Operation
Stagecoach South Midlands operated under three different brands:- The Oxford Tube brand, used for express buses between Oxford and LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. - The Stagecoach in Banbury brand, used for local buses in and around the town of BanburyBanburyBanbury is a market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in the Cherwell District of Oxfordshire. It is northwest of London, southeast of Birmingham, south of Coventry and north northwest of the county town of Oxford...
in Oxfordshire. - The Stagecoach in Oxford brand, used for local buses in and around the city of Oxford.
From 1 July 2002, the Oxford and Banbury brands were merged to become Stagecoach in Oxfordshire. Then from 1 March 2004 Stagecoach in Oxfordshire and Stagecoach in Warwickshire
Stagecoach in Warwickshire
Stagecoach in Warwickshire is the Stagecoach Group bus operator in and around the county of Warwickshire, England. While Stagecoach in Warwickshire is the brand image of the company, its legal name is Midland Red Ltd...
were split to become two entirely separate divisions of Stagecoach Group.
The local buses in Oxford operate in competition with local buses operated by the Oxford Bus Company
Oxford Bus Company
Oxford Bus Company is a bus operator serving the city and surrounding area of Oxford, England and is the trading name of City of Oxford Motor Services Ltd. It is now a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group...
. Oxford is one of the few UK cities where such free and unsubsidised competition (as envisaged by the architects of bus deregulation
Bus deregulation
Bus deregulation in Great Britain came into force on 26 October 1986, as part of the Transport Act 1985.The 'Buses' White Paper was the basis of the Transport Act 1985, which provided for the deregulation of local bus services in the whole of the United Kingdom except for Northern Ireland and...
in the 1980s) still exists. Similarly the Oxford Tube coaches compete with the Oxford Bus Company's Espress service. This unusual level of both service and competition is facilitated by Oxford's status as a prestigious university city, lack of car parking spaces in the city centre, and the consequent large numbers of young, affluent but car-less inhabitants. In 2010 it was announced that a quality contract had been agreed between the two principal bus operators and the County Council leading to joint timetabling and ticketing. A consequence of this partnership was that on 15 July 2010, Stagecoach Oxford began using hybrid
Hybrid electric vehicle
A hybrid electric vehicle is a type of hybrid vehicle and electric vehicle which combines a conventional internal combustion engine propulsion system with an electric propulsion system. The presence of the electric powertrain is intended to achieve either better fuel economy than a conventional...
buses on Route 1 (Cowley, Blackbird Leys). Twelve buses of this type, which use battery power with a small Diesel generator, had been delivered by the manufacturers Alexander Dennis
Alexander Dennis
Alexander Dennis Limited is the largest bus builder in the United Kingdom. It incorporated the three last surviving bus manufacturers which started bus production before World War II: Dennis, Alexander and Plaxton.- History :Alexander Dennis was formed as TransBus on 1 January 2001, after the...
in time for the launch date, with a further fourteen to be delivered to Oxford later in the year.
Stagecoach in Oxfordshire operates four sub-brands, namely: Stagecoach in Oxfordshire, Oxford Tube, and a National Express franchise from Oxford to Luton and Stansted airports (737).
It also operates Route X5
Stagecoach bus route X5
Stagecoach bus route X5 is an inter-urban bus service linking Oxford and Cambridge via Bicester, Buckingham, Milton Keynes, Bedford and St Neots. The route started in 1995 with an hourly service which was increased to half-hourly in 2005 and new vehicles were introduced in 2009. It has since won...
, which is a high frequency inter-urban coach service linking Oxford and Cambridge via Bicester, Buckingham, Milton Keynes, Bedford and St Neots.
Oxford Tube
Van Hool
Van Hool NV is a Belgian coachbuilder and manufacturer of buses, coaches, trolleybuses, and trailers.The company was founded in 1947 by Bernard van Hool in Koningshooikt, nearby Lier, Belgium. In the early years, the company introduced serial production and exported their products all over Europe...
Astromega double decker coaches with free Wi-Fi internet access and 240V mains power points on board every coach. As of 2009, these replaced the old fleet of 25 Neoplan Skyliner
Neoplan Skyliner
The NEOPLAN Skyliner is a double-deck multi-axle luxury touring coach built by the German coach manufacturer and MAN SE subsidiary NEOPLAN Bus GmbH.-History:...
s. With departures up to every 10 minutes, the service begins at Gloucester Green
Gloucester Green
Gloucester Green is a square in central Oxford, England, and the site of the city's bus station. It lies between George Street to the south and Beaumont Street to the north. To the west is Worcester Street and to the east is Gloucester Street....
coach station in Oxford City Centre, then stops at Queen's Lane
Queen's Lane
Queen's Lane is an historic street in central Oxford, England, named after Queen's College, to the south and west.At the south-eastern end of Queen's Lane is a junction onto the High Street...
, St Clements
St Clement's, Oxford
St Clement's is a district in Oxford, England, on the east bank of the River Cherwell. Its main road, St Clement's Street , links The Plain near Magdalen Bridge with London Place at the foot of Headington Hill at the junction with Marston Road to the north...
, Brookes University, Headington
Headington
Headington is a suburb of Oxford, England. It is at the top of Headington Hill overlooking the city in the Thames Valley below. The life of the large residential area is centred upon London Road, the main road between London and Oxford.-History:...
Shops, Green Road Roundabout, Thornhill Park & Ride, Lewknor
Lewknor
Lewknor is a village and civil parish south of Thame in Oxfordshire. The civil parish includes the village of Postcombe.-Iron Age and Roman periods:...
Turn, Hillingdon
Hillingdon
Hillingdon is a suburban area within the London Borough of Hillingdon, situated 14.2 miles west of Charing Cross.Much of Hillingdon is represented as the Hillingdon East ward within the local authority, Hillingdon Council...
, Shepherd's Bush
Shepherd's Bush
-Commerce:Commercial activity in Shepherd's Bush is now focused on the Westfield shopping centre next to Shepherd's Bush Central line station and on the many small shops which run along the northern side of the Green....
, Notting Hill Gate
Notting Hill Gate
Notting Hill Gate is one of the main thoroughfares of Notting Hill, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically the street was a location for toll gates, from which it derives its modern name.- Location :...
, Marble Arch
Marble Arch
Marble Arch is a white Carrara marble monument that now stands on a large traffic island at the junction of Oxford Street, Park Lane, and Edgware Road, almost directly opposite Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park in London, England...
, and finally two stops at Victoria.
There are three express services on Monday to Friday at 0600, 0624, and 0700: these services do not stop at Lewknor, Hillingdon, Shepherd's Bush or Notting Hill Gate.
Fleet
Stagecoach Oxfordshire run various types of vehicle:- Dennis Dart SLF/Alexander ALX200Alexander ALX200The 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...
- Dennis Dart SLF/Plaxton Pointer 2
- Dennis Trident 2Dennis Trident 2Dennis Trident 2 is a 2-axle low-floor double-decker bus chassis originally built by Dennis in the United Kingdom, which was unveiled in 1997 and replaced the Dennis Arrow...
/Alexander ALX400Alexander ALX400The Alexander ALX400 is a 2-axle double-decker bus body built by Walter Alexander Coachbuilders... - MAN 18.220/Alexander ALX300Alexander ALX300The Alexander ALX300 is a full size single-decker bus body built by Alexander at Falkirk, Scotland, United Kingdom, which was first built in 1997...
- MAN 18.240/Alexander Dennis Enviro300
- Optare SoloOptare SoloThe Optare Solo is a low-floor midibus manufactured by Optare in Leeds, UK since 1997. The name "Solo" is a play on the low-floor status of the bus, the manufacturer believing its vehicle having an entrance that is "so low" from the floor, namely 200 mm with kneeling suspension.The innovative...
- Volvo B6LE/Alexander ALX200Alexander ALX200The 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...
- Volvo B10MVolvo B10MThe Volvo B10M is a popular mid-engined bus and coach chassis built by Volvo between 1978 and 2001. It was built as the successor of the B58 and was equipped with a 9.6-litre horizontally-mounted Volvo THD100/THD101/THD102/THD103/THD104/DH10A diesel engine mounted under the floor, near the middle...
- Scania N230UDScania N-seriesScania N-series is a series of city bus with straight-up, transversely mounted Euro IV/Euro V engine at the rear.It is available as N230UB, N270UB as well as the N230UD and N270UD...
/Alexander Dennis Enviro400
Electric hybrid buses
Hybrid electric vehicle
A hybrid electric vehicle is a type of hybrid vehicle and electric vehicle which combines a conventional internal combustion engine propulsion system with an electric propulsion system. The presence of the electric powertrain is intended to achieve either better fuel economy than a conventional...
, built by Alexander Dennis
Alexander Dennis
Alexander Dennis Limited is the largest bus builder in the United Kingdom. It incorporated the three last surviving bus manufacturers which started bus production before World War II: Dennis, Alexander and Plaxton.- History :Alexander Dennis was formed as TransBus on 1 January 2001, after the...
with the hybrid mechanism supplied by BAE Systems
BAE Systems
BAE Systems plc is a British multinational defence, security and aerospace company headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that has global interests, particularly in North America through its subsidiary BAE Systems Inc. BAE is among the world's largest military contractors; in 2009 it was the...
, were introduced in July 2010.
Depots
In OxfordshireOxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
:
- BanburyBanburyBanbury is a market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in the Cherwell District of Oxfordshire. It is northwest of London, southeast of Birmingham, south of Coventry and north northwest of the county town of Oxford...
, Canal Street (BY) - OxfordOxfordThe city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, Horspath Road (OX) - WitneyWitneyWitney is a town on the River Windrush, west of Oxford in Oxfordshire, England.The place-name 'Witney' is first attested in a Saxon charter of 969 as 'Wyttannige'; it appears as 'Witenie' in the Domesday Book of 1086. The name means 'Witta's island'....
, Corn Street (WY)
Also, Oxford depot has out-stations at Bicester
Bicester
Bicester is a town and civil parish in the Cherwell district of northeastern Oxfordshire in England.This historic market centre is one of the fastest growing towns in Oxfordshire Development has been favoured by its proximity to junction 9 of the M40 motorway linking it to London, Birmingham and...
, Chipping Norton and Harwell
Harwell, Oxfordshire
Harwell is a village and civil parish in the Vale of White Horse west of Didcot. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire.-Amenities:...
.