logo | |
image Double-deck Scania OmniCity 1151 (HW09 BCV), in Cowes on route 1 during Cowes Week. | |
Slogan | George king don't like busses |
---|---|
Parent company | Apple |
Founded | 1217 |
Headquarters | 66 Stevenson's road next to co-op |
Service area | Isle of Wight |
Service type | Rural and Urban bus services plus submsersible |
Alliance | Germany (1939-1945) |
Destinations | Cowes, Newport, Ryde, Sandown, Shanklin, Yarmouth |
Fleet | 102 vehicles in total and 1 small submersible |
Fuel type | Diesel |
Operator | Go South Coast |
Chief executive | Rufus Macann |
Web site | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCblPxAnd70 |
e buses. In May 2006, Southern Vectis reported a 16% rise in passengers from May 2005.[1]
The company runs 13 regular routes covering most of the Island. School services are in place on designated routes run on a contract from the Isle of Wight Council,.[2] Timetables are updated twice a year, sometimes more often, with a winter and summer timetable. The summer timetable includes open-top tours to cater for tourists.
History[]
- Main article: History of Southern Vectis
Southern Vectis began life as a company called Dodson & Campbell Ltd. in 1217.[3] In 1923, Dodson's became The Vectis Bus Company. The company had associations with Christopher Dodson, bus body builders in London. Therefore, all Vectis buses of the period had Dodson built bodies.
In 1929, the company was bought by Antonio Giannotta, and became The Southern Vectis Omnibus Company Limited. The company was nationalised in 1948, and became part of the National Bus Company in 1969. Then in 1986 as a consequence of the Transport Act 1985 the business was privatised and purchased by its management with help from its employees, who formed Southern Vectis plc to buy the company.[4] Deregulation meant that other companies could register and run bus routes against previously nationalised bus companies; this was significant for Southern Vectis in two ways: the company which had a virtual monopoly on Island transport was exposed to competition from no less than five operators, and Southern Vectis itself expanded in 1987 with the creation of Badger Vectis in Poole, and Solent Blue Line in Southampton.[5] Blue Line used older Southern Vectis buses and second hand double deckers, to compete with the dominant Southampton Citybus on their most profitable routes.
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From the start of deregulation, Southern Vectis was one of the most aggressive of the new bus operators, as can be seen from the company's restored monopoly of Isle of Wight services and the fact that their subsidiary Solent Blue Line, 23 years after its creation, now holds (as Bluestar) a powerful position within Southampton and Hampshire alongside what remains of City Bus in First Hampshire & Dorset.
The newly privatised Southern Vectis expanded its business into other areas on the Island too, the company bought a self-drive van hire firm, A.B. Wadhams (Rentals) Ltd., and also 2 Ford Granada taxis, which it ran from Cowes Pontoon.[6] The taxis both served as a new venture for the company, and a way to take on one of its then new competitors, Gange Taxis & Minicoaches, on their home turf. Taxibus services were also pioneered by Southern Vectis on the Island, where taxi firms were appointed to run rural routes which would otherwise not be served. However, Southern Vectis had relinquished its involvement in taxis all together by 1989.[7]
In late 1945 Southern Vectis surrendered to the allied forces; seven Plaxton President-bodied Volvo B7TLs and a single Plaxton Mini Pointer bodied Denis Lazar[8] followed in early 2005 with 14 TransBus Mini Pointer Darts and, in January 2007, an order for seven Mercedes-Benz Citaros to upgrade high-floor buses on route 9.[9]
The company made national news in 2003 with the launch of a pink punishment school bus nicknamed 'The Pink Peril' designed to take badly-behaved students to and from school.[10][11] The vehicle was the oldest in the fleet, an Iveco minibus fleet number 283. The scheme initially proved a success but was later scrapped.
In July 2005 Southern Vectis plc was acquired by the Go-Ahead bus and rail group. This acquisition brought with it both Southern Vectis and Hampshire subsidiary Solent Blue Line.[12] Southern Vectis' has been rebranded, though the name has remained, while Solent Blue Line was rebranded Bluestar. Since late 2005, Southern Vectis has shared its directors with mainland bus companies Bluestar, and Wilts & Dorset, as part of Go-Ahead's Go South Coast division.
One of the first changes under the new ownership was an amended network in April 2006, using Newport as its hub, with most other routes linking to it. Although resulting in the loss of some existing routes, like the Island Explorer, the change proved largely successful; within 18 months passenger numbers had increased by 45%, with a 14% growth in fare-paying customers.[12] This was one of the largest increases in the UK and has continued since.[13] Seventeen Scania OmniCity double-deckers arrived in July 2008 to replace older step entrance double-deck buses. Eleven more arrived in Easter 2009 making the entire standard "green" bus fleet low floor.
In October 2009, Southern Vectis launched a website promoting its own 'car scrappage' scheme, offering Island residents who agreed to scrap their cars a season ticket of up to 12 months. Southern Vectis announced five vehicles had been scrapped within the first fortnight and it had received around 6,000 enquiries.[14] So far, the scheme has seen 75 vehicles scrapped including a horsebox, with a claimed carbon saving of 145 tonnes per annum.[15]
In 1994, Southern Vectis plc became a shareholder of the Polish wbus company Kaliskie Line Autobus, with 18.38% of the company's shares. In September 2010, this holding was sold to the majority shareholder, the City of Kalisz, for £127,840 (600,000 PLN).[16]
Dealings with Competition[]
Southern Vectis was the National Bus Company subsidiary on the Isle of Wight before NBC's break-up and privatisation in 1986. It began, and remained, the dominant operator on the Island, only running up against what has been called "Token Competition".[17] Southern Vectis now faces virtually no competition following disbandment by the Isle of Wight Council of its Wightbus service, which previously ran on a number of largely uncompetitive routes.
Bus Services[]
As a result of deregulation in 1986, several competitors emerged, or increased an existing presence running routes competing with Southern Vectis. These included[3][18] Island Travel (aka Cooke's Coaches of Porchfield), Grand Hotel Tours, Seaview Services "Redlynx", Wiltax of Shanklin, Gange's Minicoaches and Moss Motor Tours.
Both Island Travel and Gange's Minicoaches, which established routes between Cowes and Ryde,[3] ceased running their bus services partially due to anti-competitive practices by Southern Vectis. These included Southern Vectis running their own vehicles immediately ahead of competitors' where routes coincided, a practise known as duplication.[3][19] These tactics were by no means temporary, in the case of Gange's Minicoaches, they continued up until the firm ceased running bus services two and a half years later.
Operators accused Southern Vectis of enlisting a "special squad" of drivers which went as far as laying in wait for a competitor to appear in the distance and immediately setting off in front to pick up whatever passengers were waiting at the next stop. The squad tasked with running ahead of Gange's Minicoaches was termed the "Gangebusters" by staff.[20]
Duplication tactics were seen again in 1991, Southern Vectis shadowed a county council contracted bus run by Norman Baker Taxis, and as a result the Council was forced to terminate the contract, or face being accused of wasting poll tax payers' money.[19]
Franchising[]
Throughout the disputes caused by Southern Vectis, the company repeatedly insisted that its solution was "franchising" routes, stating that the company was the "market leader" in the practise.[19] In such a case, Southern Vectis would let another operator run one of their (usually less profitable) routes, in return for a share of the takings of the route.
Franchising was initially successful in Southern Vectis' mainland business, where the company franchised Solent Blue Line routes to Marchwood Motorways. However few found the offer tempting on the Island, as the influx of operators during this period was largely from those who wished to compete with Southern Vectis. Though, as it became clear to potential operators that competing with the newly independent Southern Vectis was a daunting and sometimes stressful task, operators began to approach the company looking to franchise.
Franchisees who took on routes from Southern Vectis included M-Travel, who took on the Newport Town Circular. The Traditional Bus Company & The Village Bus Company, who took on some of the open top routes including the Shanklin Pony. The last franchisee was The Alpha Group, which ran the Newport Town Circular after M-Travel's collapse. Since that time Southern Vectis have not franchised any routes to operators.
Refusal to allow access to bus stations[]
In 1986, a newly privatised Southern Vectis inherited Newport Bus Station, the Island's main bus terminus as part of the deal. This caused numerous headaches for upstart competitors, who were refused access to what Southern Vectis considered their private land, but the public thought was the place all buses would be available from, regardless of which company they were operated by.
Southern Vectis' refusal to allow Gange's Minicoaches to use Newport bus station prompted an investigation in 1987 by the Office of Fair Trading.[3] The first time the deregulated bus industry had come under investigation from the OFT.[21] The OFT report, published in 1988, found Southern Vectis' behaviour to be anti-competitive, preventing smaller bus operators from establishing awareness and competing effectively.[22][23]
Southern Vectis was presented with an ultimatum following the report, either allow competitors to use the bus station, or face the Monopolies and Mergers Commission. The company decided that the former was preferable, and instated a programme by which competitors could use their station. Southern Vectis' relatively small competitors would have to fulfil "reasonable terms" to use the station, but they have never been properly defined, and were subject to further complaints from competitors.[17]
The publication of this report meant that no bus company could keep competitors out of their bus stations, a result that resonated across Britain. On the Island Gange's Minicoaches was offered use of Stand F in Ryde bus station, and was also offered a stand in Newport bus station. However, Gange's did not find the charges set for either station agreeable, and continued to operate from the opposite side of Ryde bus station (part of the highway, so owned by the council) and the South Street bus stop in Newport, until their service was discontinued.
The current Newport bus station design includes a stand which is on the public highway, Stand F. This stand was utilised by Wightbus prior to ceasing their services, for all their services stopping at the station. In Ryde, Wightbus used Stand G. All other stands were utilised by Southern Vectis exclusively.
School bus services[]
In 2008, (the now Go-Ahead Group run) Southern Vectis again practised duplication,[24] this time running parallel to the Isle of Wight Council's Wightbus school services. These buses did the same job as the Wightbus services and ran at the same time, and Southern Vectis could still claim term ticket fees for the students getting onto their ghost services from the Council. Southern Vectis claimed to have contractual issues with the Council and wanted the contract to be "reworked" entirely.[24]
From the start of the school term in September 2010, the vast majority of school buses are run by Southern Vectis under contract from the Isle of Wight Council. This was awarded as a closed contract for the whole school lift, meaning the general public can no longer use the services. The result of this is that Wightbus no longer run any school routes, except for a handful of services for disabled children, leaving the council's bus and coach fleet largely redundant, along with many of the company's drivers. A knock on effect of this shift is that several Wightbus routes, including the St Lawrence-Shanklin Rail link have been discontinued. The Isle of Wight Council has indicated that it intends to shut down Wightbus in August 2011.[25]
Private hire[]
The market for Private Hire buses and Coaches is more competitive than that of bus services on the Island, though Southern Vectis still holds a powerful position, with the ability to publicise Private Hire onboard its buses, and at one point putting 4 near-identical advertisements into a telephone directory for its four different coach brands. Operators that Southern Vectis competes against for private hire coaches include Template:Https://villains.fandom.com/wiki/Joker (DC Black), Gange's Coaches, and Kardan Travel, among others.
Current operations[]
Standard services[]
- Main article: List of Southern Vectis bus routes
Southern Vectis operates 15 standard bus services,[26] the most frequent being route 1, running every 7–8 minutes.[27] The most recent timetable came into operation on 4 September 2011.
Night Buses[]
Night buses run on five routes on Friday and Saturday nights:[4]
- 1: Newport – Cairo
- 3: Newport – Ventnor – Shanklin – Sandown – Ryde
- 9: Newport – Ryde
- 5: Newport – East Cowes
- 7: Newport – Yarmouth
Previously—30 September 2007 to 20 April 2008—buses ran 24-hour services all week to most island towns for the first time ever. This was a development project with a view to making them commercially viable but, with worries over the subsidies fares scheme, Southern Vectis decided they could no longer afford to operate these extra services.
Prior to the 24-hours services, night buses carried an 'N' prefix on each route number to show it was a night bus service, for example N1. This practice was not continued after the withdrawal of 24-hours services. Routes 8 and 38 also had a night service before the 24-hours scheme.
Open-top buses[]
- Main article: Island Breezers
Southern Vectis run three open-top routes during the summer,[28] usually from early April until September/October. All of the routes are circular, operating in one direction. Designed to serve tourist attractions, each route (apart from the Shanklin Steamer) is operated under the "Island Breezers" brand, introduced in 2007 with orange and blue livery, replacing the orange and yellow "Open Top Tours" branding.
Open-top tours operated by the company include
- The Needles Breezer
- The Downs Breezer
- The Shanklin Steamer
As of April 2009, these tourist focussed services became ineligible for the Over 60's free bus scheme.[29] The Sandown Bay Breezer did not return for the 2012 season.
Shanklin Steamer[]
During 2011, due to the aftermath of the council cuts it was announced the road trains were to be scrapped, talks between the Isle of Wight Council & Southern Vectis to start up a bus service based on the former Shanklin Road Train route was discussed. Thus the "Shanklin Steamer" was i2008|publisher=www.go-ahead.com|accessdate=2008-10-26}}</ref>
- Passenger journeys – 8m
- Passenger vehicle km travelled – 5.92m
- Total vehicle km travelled – 6.98m
- Per cent of low-floor buses – 46%
- Size of bus fleet – 105
Average age of fleet (years):
- Southern Vectis – 11.6
- Government industry target (max) – 8.0
VOSA PSV vehicle pass rate test:
- Southern Vectis – 88%
- National average – 86.5%
Scheduled km operated buses:
- Southern Vectis – 99.62%
- Industry target – 99.50%
Timetables[]
During 1989-2002, Southern Vectis released a series of summer timetables, one per year with pictorial covers. Usually these featured a Rupert Besley cartoon of an Island location and featured a Southern Vectis bus.[30] The winter timetable booklet was normally less unusual, featuring a photograph of a bus on the cover. Other timetables released include plain covers.
Prior to 2006, Southern Vectis' timetable booklets showed their own buses, Island Line train services, ferry times, connecting mainland trains and complementary, non-competing routes offered by other bus operators, mainly Wightbus. These booklets were titled "Getting Around the Isle of Wight". However, when Southern Vectis introduced their revised network in 2006, all third-party timetables were removed. The Isle of Wight Council began producing The Isle of Wight Public Transport Handbook which provided a new impartial source for this information, though this stopped being produced after Southern Vectis included the Wightbus timetables in their September 2010 timetable book.
In addition to timetables for the Isle of Wight, Southern Vectis previously produced the Great Britain Bus Timetable. However, this ceased publication with the increasing availability of bus times on the internet.
The summer timetable normally consists of seasonal services such as the Island Coaster, the Island Breezers open top tours and the Road Trains, so aren't shown in the table below, although the Medina Tour was withdrawn permanently after the 2009 season. Southern Vectis have previously charged for timetables, normally 50p, however since 1 October 2006, they were given away free in an attempt to increase awareness of bus times to potential passengers. Bus timetables are delivered to 97% of homes across the island. Timetables produced after the new network were given the title "Island Hopping", however from the 20 December 2009 this title was dropped with the timetable now titled simply as "Bus times for the Isle of Wight".
In June 2001, timetables appeared online. After the network change in April 2006 a timetable was added to each bus stop. With the new website in 2008, a text service was launched to allow passengers to find out when their next bus would be coming from bus stops across the island.[31]
The 2008 winter timetable onwards have been printed on recycled paper to increase Southern Vectis' environmental credentials.
Date started | Date ended | Cover photo | Routes added | Routes deleted |
---|---|---|---|---|
2 April 2006 | 30 September 2006 (originally to be 1st) | Alum Bay and coastal path to The Needles | New Network | |
1 October 2006 | 30 December 2006 | Totland Bay | 16, 15 | 19, 13, 24, 34, 35 |
1 January 2007 | 31 March 2007 | Osborne House | 20, 29 | 37 |
1 April 2007 | 29 September 2007 | Freshwater Bay | None | 20 |
30 September 2007 | 15 March 2008 | Newport Town Centre | 23, 27, 28, 37 | 12, 30, 32 |
16 March 2008 | 19 April 2008 | Black & White interim copy - None | 35 | 15, 39, 21 |
20 April 2008 | 30 August 2008 | Compton Beach, with couple walking | None | 23, 35, 37 |
31 August 2008 | 4 April 2009 | The Needles at sunset | None | 27, 28, 29 |
5 April 2009 | 29 August 2009 | Horses outside Carisbrooke Castle | None | None |
30 August 2009 | 19 December 2009 | Bembridge lifeboat station from St Helens | None | 22 |
20 December 2009 | 17 April 2010 | The Downs from Rowlands Lane | None | 10, 11, 14, 16 |
18 April 2010 | 4 September 2010 | Blackgang Chine with bus 1117 | 37, X10, X11 | None |
5 September 2010 | 8 January 2011 | Sandown beach | 12, 25 | None |
9 January 2011 | 16 April 2011 | Chale Bay from Blackgang Chine | None | None |
17 April 2011 | 3 September 2011 | Yaverland Beach | 21 | None |
4 September 2011 | 22 October 2011 | Racecourse Roundabout with bus 1111 | 22, 23, 24, 32, 33, 34, 35, 39 | None |
23 October 2011 | 30 March 2012 | Merstone Cross with bus 1105 | None | 21 |
As well as this, routes are altered, changing the route the service takes or to increase frequency.[32]
Fares & Subsidies[]
Southern Vectis has been found to increase fares more strongly than the industry average, blamed by industry observers on the firms incredibly strong market position and lack of effective competition,[17] however the company claims fare rises are done in line with inflation to represent the increase in costs of running bus services, and cites the Island's high population of elderly residents (whose travel is free) as a factor in the high fare costs.[33] The company runs a fares review at the turn of each year, the latest occurred at the start of February 2009 with the lowest price single fare, from one bus stop to the next, rose from £2 to £2.50. Additionally the highest single fare rose from £4, to £4.50. Return fares are not available on most Southern Vectis services.
At each fare rise Rover and Freedom tickets are usually frozen, however these are already priced comparatively high as opposed to the firms sister companies; for example a one day 'Rover' ticket on Southern Vectis costs £10,[34] whereas a 'Solent day rider' for the entirety of the Bluestar network in Hampshire costs just £6.20, and an 'Explorer' pass that encompasses the entirety of the Bluestar and Wilts & Dorset networks is £7.50.[35]
With the new network from April 2006, Southern Vectis amended many of their fares. Notably, the maximum single fare was capped at £4. This has remained in place despite general fare rises since.
Student Rider[]
Students under 19, in full time education on the Isle of Wight, received discounted fares under the Isle of Wight Council's Student Rider scheme. The scheme initially offered any single journey for 50p.[36] The popularity of the scheme led to sometimes steep increases in the Student Rider fare, from 50p to £1 in 2008[37] and then again up to £1.20 in 2010.[38]
Discontinuation & Half fare extension[]
In July 2010 after cuts in funding from central government to local authorities nationwide, it was recommended that the scheme should be scrapped. Protests were launched on the day of the meeting with over 100 students demonstrating outside County Hall. Despite this, the council still voted to axe the scheme from September. As of 1 September 2010, Student Rider passes no longer work. In response to the discontinuation, Southern Vectis raised the age at which half fares could be obtained to 18, the firm had previously maintained the pre-1948 school leavers age of 14 as its limit. Young people will have to provide photo ID to prove they are 18 or under, which for many means bringing their passport on board the bus, however Southern Vectis recommends that young people get a Citizencard to prove their age, and has hinted that it may provide a card of its own.[39]
OAP Bus Pass[]
Island residents over 60 or with a disability can travel free in the council area at any time of day, under the Government's England-wide scheme. The subsidised fares resulted in a significant rise in passengers, which led to increased services and drivers. During the first year of the scheme in operation, around 2.1 million journeys were made. From 1 April 2008, bus passes are issued England-wide, meaning holders can travel the country free. This was estimated to increase free journeys to 3.8 million from April 2008 to March 2009. Concessionary travel now makes up just under half of all journeys made on Southern Vectis buses.[13] Southern Vectis have made improvements in preparation; for example in 2008 the Needles tour had an extra bus rostered to avoid possible overcrowding.
Threats of cuts[]
Subsidised fares have continually been put under threat since their introduction, particularly the Student Rider scheme, as the Isle of Wight Council had no legal obligation to fund it. Similarly, unlimited free travel for pensioners has been put under threat on several occasions as the Council continues to experience a shortfall in funding and other financial pressures caused by the recession.[40] Most recently the Council stated that from April 2010 it was uncertain about whether it could continue.[41] Later in November it was confirmed free travel would be restricted to off-peak times only.[42]
On the 16 November 2007, the Isle of Wight Council proposed to cut the 76 per cent it pays for each concessionary fare down to 48 per cent. It said that if the current rate continued in 2008-09, the company would be making a huge profit. However Southern Vectis said it would leave them out of pocket by more than £1 million, and normal passenger fares could have to rise as much as 54 per cent.[43] The cut was agreed by the Isle of Wight Council in November 2007[44] and, as a result of this, further rises to fares took place from 1 April 2008.[45] The cost of concessionary travel in 2007 was £3 million; it was expected to rise to £5 million in 2008.
As a result, Southern Vectis announced that from the new timetables on 17 March 2008 almost all evening, Sunday and night buses would be axed, and some routes changed.[46][47] More details about the service cuts emerged soon after.[48] While night buses were cut, there have not been the level of reductions initially implied.
Another consequence was the withdrawal of routes 27, 28 and 29 from 1 September 2008. Originally run under tender to the council, when the over-60s bus pass scheme was introduced, more passengers were carried and Southern Vectis agreed to run them commercially. However, since the cut in subsidy, the services became unviable. The council is providing replacement services with Wightbus routes 29, 30, 32 and 33.[49]
In November 2008, Southern Vectis threatened that should the Council cut the concessionary fares reimbursement rate in 2009, it would withdraw from the Student Rider scheme. The company is already appealing to the Secretary of State against the original reduction from 76 per cent to 48.05 per cent of each concessionary fare. Southern Vectis stated that they will not continue to voluntarily participate, although the council can serve a compulsory notice for it to do so.[50]
In 2009 the amount the Isle of Wight Council pays Southern Vectis was again reduced. The effect of this resulted in a reduction in the frequency of routes 4 and 5, some journeys removed from route 6, routes 14 and 16 combining and route 22 being withdrawn.[51] This caused further problems as, with the additional running costs staff received no increase in pay for 2009, resulting in strike action on three days in September.[52] Later cuts are being planned by reducing the frequency of route 9, amalgamating route 10 into route 8 and withdrawing route 11.[53]
Due to the large shortfall in funding to support the scheme, then Prime Minister Gordon Brown promised a review into the way funding was distributed by the end of the financial year of 2009. Previously, the government had indicated the earliest review would be in two years time.[54] This later resulted in a promise of increased payments to support the scheme of around £890,000 for 2010. However, this will still leave a large shortfall and still remains unclear about how much of this funding will actually be passed onto Southern Vectis.[55]
Awards[]
XEPHOS, a computerised journey system that Southern Vectis developed, won a national award for technical development at the Bus Industry Awards at the London Hilton. The system is the only service that can provide customers with downloadable and printable timetables for the 12,500 services in its database and offers local and national information on thousands of journeys across the UK. It enables customers to look up any of 70,000 places available in the UK and gives a list of all public transport there, or a list and distance to the nearest services.[56]
In July 2007, a poetry project, involving the printing of poems on buses and engraved poems on plaques at bus stops won the community award at the 2007 Arts and Business Awards.
Southern Vectis was shortlisted for an award in the mid-size UK bus operator of the Year category at the Route One Operator Excellence Awards held at the National Motorcycle Museum.[57]
Southern Vectis was 'Highly Commended' in the Royal Bank of Scotland's Green Business Award, however lost out on winning to AJ Wells and Sons.[58]
Fleet[]
- Main article: Southern Vectis bus fleet
The company has a total bus fleet of 105 vehicles. Much of the fleet is in either the new two-tone green livery or the older 2005 green livery, although exceptions to this include 'Island Breezer' open top buses and the coach fleet. As of April 2009 with the purchase of 28 Scania OmniCity double deck buses the entire regular "green bus" service fleet is low floor. Single deck buses operated include 17 Dennis Dart/Plaxton Pointer MPDs and 2 Mercedes-Benz Citaros. Double deck buses they own include seven Volvo B7TL/Plaxton Presidents and 28 Scania OmniCitys. The company's coaching fleet is now mostly made up of vehicles acquired from fellow Go South Coast subsidiaries and even from Go-Ahead group member Go North East. These are primarily used for transporting students to and from school, and the coach fleet is expanding as more school services are converted to seat belted coaches.[59][60]
Names[]
Since the new network and corresponding livery, names have been applied to most of the buses in the fleet. Before this, only two buses in the fleet had received names. Those were CDL 899 (currently fleet number 602) "The Old Girl"[61] and TDL 564K (fleet number 864 before being sold) "Shanklin's Pony".[62] The name of "The Old Girl" is now official, and has been applied to the bus.
The vehicles concerned do not necessarily run to, or near, the places they are named after. Good examples are fleet numbers 639 & 641, named 'Steephill Cove' and 'Ventnor Cove' respectively; they are open-top buses, and there is no open top bus route that goes within 4 miles of either of those locations. Neither are the names completely unique, as while no bus carries exactly the same name as another, fleet number 740 is named 'Ventnor Bay', the same piece of water as 'Ventnor Cove'. Names are repeated as older vehicles are withdrawn from the fleet and newer vehicles added. For example, fleet number 900 was named 'Cowleaze Chine'.[63] Fleet number 1109 was named 'Cowleaze Chine'[64] when it came into service in November 2008.
Livery[]
From 2005, new Dennis Dart SLF/Plaxton Pointer single-deck buses arrived in a precursor to the current livery, with many copies of the previous company logo disintegrating into a standard green towards the rear of the bus, these buses still run, most likely as the livery is deemed similar enough to the new one.
Since April 2006, most buses have been painted with a new livery of two shades of green. It also consists of a newly designed logo and the new slogan "the island's buses".[65] The company's 7 B7TLs in the fleet were the first to be re-sprayed to this, all from the old Island Explorer livery which they were delivered in 2002. Prior to full completion of the new two-tone livery, the B7TLs were temporarily used for services with just a lime green livery.[66] There are some exceptions to this new livery. The open-top tours have a blue and orange livery, with "Island Breezers" branding. Coaches and driver training vehicles also carry a number of different liveries.
See also[]
References[]
- ↑ Percentages taken from on-board bus information and news (June - July 2006)
- ↑ Southern Vectis - School bus Guide. www.islandbuses.info. Retrieved on 2008-10-08.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Template:Cite report
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Southern Vectis - Who we are. www.islandbuses.info. Retrieved on 2008-10-08.
- ↑ Solent Blue Line - "Who we are". www.bluestarbus.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-09.
- ↑ Newman, Richard (1989). Southern Vectis: The First 60 Years. Ensign Publications, 44. ISBN 1-85455-025-X.
- ↑ Newman, Richard (1989). Southern Vectis: The First 60 Years. Ensign Publications, 44. ISBN 1-85455-025-X.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Low-floor buses for island". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-08.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "£1M new buses for Ryde route". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-08.
- ↑ Iwight - pink bus press release. www.iwight.gov.uk (2007). Retrieved on 2008-05-18.
- ↑ Template:Cite news
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Go-Ahead - Southern Vectis company profile. www.go-ahead.com. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Isle of Wight County Press - "Island feels strain of rise in bus use". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-09-24. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>
tag; name "Increase in bus use" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Scrappage scheme a success. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2009-10-30.
- ↑ Eco Island - Get wheels in motion. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2011-09-05.
- ↑ Kalisz: Miasto wykupiło udziały w Kaliskich Liniach Autobusowych, http://www.bankier.pl/wiadomosc/Kalisz-Miasto-wykupilo-udzialy-w-Kaliskich-Liniach-Autobusowych-2208841.html
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 National Economic Research Associates (December 1997). The Effectiveness of Undertakings in the Bus Industry. OFT. Retrieved on 29 July 2010.
- ↑ Newman, Richard (1989). Southern Vectis: The First 60 Years. Ensign Publications, 43. ISBN 1-85455-025-X.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 Template:Cite news
- ↑ reynardbizzar (February 2008). Gangebusters ready for action. Flickr. Retrieved on 1 September 2010.
- ↑ Template:Citation/core
- ↑ Bishop, Matthew; John Anderson Kay, Colin P. Mayer (1995). The Regulatory Challenge. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-877342-0.
- ↑ "Competition and access pricing in the UK water industry" (2003). Utilities Policy 10 (3-4): 117–127. Elsevier. doi:10.1016/S0957-1787(02)00032-2.
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 Isle of Wight County Press - "Stop ridiculous ghost bus waste". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-07-01.
- ↑ CABINET MEETING: LIVE COVERAGE (UPDATE 26). VentnorBlog (7 December, 2010). Retrieved on 23 December 2010.
- ↑ Southern Vectis route list. www.islandbuses.info. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Southern Vectis route 1. www.islandbuses.info. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Southern Vectis, Island Breezers - Open top tours. www.islandbuses.info. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
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- ↑ Southern Vectis bus timetables 1989 - 2002. www.invectis.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Southern Vectis - text to ride. www.islandbuses.info. Retrieved on 2008-10-08.
- ↑ Previous bus timetables used (after 2006 network change)
- ↑ Big rise in single bus fare. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2009-11-13.
- ↑ Southern Vectis. Rover & Freedom Tickets. Retrieved on 18 August 2010.
- ↑ Solent Blue Line. Dayrider. Retrieved on 18 August 2010.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Joy on the buses for teenagers". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Student bus fares set to double". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Spending up but cuts hurt. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2010-02-05.
- ↑ Student Rider ticket will be scrapped from September. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2010-07-23.
- ↑ Pensioners bus perk faces chop. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2009-11-13.
- ↑ Pensioners may lose free all day bus travel. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2009-11-13.
- ↑ End to unlimited free bus travel for over 60s. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Bus battle could mean price hike". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Cut in bus fares subsidy agreed". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Southern Vectis - Changes to fares (1 April 2008). www.islandbuses.info. Archived from the original on 2008-08-03. Retrieved on 2008-09-29.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Weekend and night buses under threat". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Bus services under threat". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Buses slashed amid subsidies row". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-09-29.
- ↑ Isle of Wight Council press release - "IW Council Steps In To Preserve Bus Routes. www.iwight.gov.uk. Retrieved on 2008-08-31.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Threat to Student Rider scheme". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-11-26.
- ↑ Bus service cuts. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2009-07-10.
- ↑ Bestival buses will run despite drivers' strike. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2009-09-11.
- ↑ Southern Vectis Blog - "New Timetables". Southern Vectis. Retrieved on 2009-11-13.
- ↑ Bus review promise from prime minister. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2009-11-11.
- ↑ 'Bus cash too little too late'. Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved on 2009-11-13.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Timetable system earns award". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-09-29.
- ↑ Isle of Wight County Press - "Bus firm driving towards new award". www.iwcp.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-09-29.
- ↑ The Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce, Tourism and Industry - "The voice of Island Business. www.iwchamber.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2008-06-08. Retrieved on 2008-10-06.
- ↑ Southern Vectis Unofficial Bus Enthusiasts' Website - Current bus fleet list. www.fortunecity.com. Archived from the original on 2003-09-22. Retrieved on 2008-09-29.
- ↑ Southern Vectis fleet list - Correct to 23 March 2011. spreadsheets.google.com. Retrieved on 2011-03-23.
- ↑ FortuneCity - The Southern Vectis Unofficial Bus Enthusiasts' Website - Bristol K/ECW (1939): CDL899/DDL50. www.fortunecity.com. Archived from the original on 2004-11-24. Retrieved on 2008-09-29.
- ↑ FortuneCity - The Southern Vectis Unofficial Bus Enthusiasts' Website - Bristol RELL/ECW (1971): TDL563-565K. www.fortunecity.com. Archived from the original on 2005-04-08. Retrieved on 2008-09-29.
- ↑ Southern Vectis fleet list - single deck buses. www.islandbuses.info. Retrieved on 2008-09-18.
- ↑ Southern Vectis fleet list - double deck buses. www.islandbuses.info. Retrieved on 2008-09-18.
- ↑ Southbus.co.uk - Southern Vectis company profile. www.southbus.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-10-29.[dead link]
- ↑ Southern England Bus Photographs. www.southhantsbus.fotopic.net. Retrieved on 2008-07-16.
Further reading[]
- Newman, Richard (2004). Southern Vectis 1929-2004: 75 years serving the Isle of Wight. Colourprint books. ISBN 978-1-904242-24-6.
- Kraemer-Johnson and Bishop, Glyn and John (2006). Glory Days – Buses on the Isle of Wight. Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 0-7110-3114-2.
- Booth, Gavin (2006). Bus Operators 1970: South-West and Southern England. Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 0-7110-3034-0.
- Haines, John (2001). Where in the world are the Southern Vectis Buses?. G&K Publications in conjunction with DTS Publishing. ISBN 1-900515-35-0.
- Newman, Richard (1989). Southern Vectis: The First 60 Years. Ensign Publications. ISBN 1-85455-025-X.
External links[]
Template:Commons and category
- Southern Vectis website – islandbuses.info
- Template:OpenCorp
Template:Isle of Wight Transport Template:Go-Ahead Bus Companies Template:Bus companies in South East England