Stagecoach Gold
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 One of the Stagecoach in Warwickshire Goldline Optare Solos on route G1 in Warwick. |
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| Slogan | "Catch a little luxury..." |
| Parent | Stagecoach Group |
| Founded | 2007 |
| Service area | Perth, Hampshire, Warwickshire, Cheltenham and Gloucester |
| Service type | Luxury bus service |
| Routes | 15 |
| Destinations | Perth Leamington Spa and Warwick Aldershot, Farnborough and Camberley Cheltenham and Gloucester, , Oxford, Bicester, Witney, Carterton, Bicester and Swindon Chichester and Selsey |
| Fleet | Alexander Dennis Enviro300 Alexander Dennis Enviro400 Optare Solo MAN 18.240 |
| Operator | Stagecoach East Stagecoach East Scotland Stagecoach in Cheltenham Stagecoach in Gloucester Stagecoach in Hants & Surrey Stagecoach in Oxfordshire Stagecoach in Warwickshire Stagecoach West Scottish Citylink |
| Website | www.stagecoachgold.com |
Stagecoach Gold, previously, Goldline is a sub-brand used by various Stagecoach Group bus subsidiaries in the United Kingdom. It was first used in Perth and Warwick in November 2007. It was extended to Aldershot from February 2009, and in September 2009 Stagecoach West started a new Stagecoach Gold 94 service between Cheltenham and Gloucester replacing the existing 94 service. The Cheltenham and Gloucester route is however branded as Stagecoach Gold, not Goldline. This marked a change in the branding, with all past services being branded as "Goldline" eventually being brought into line with the new "Stagecoach Gold" name. In 2010, the Stagecoach Gold brand was extended to services run by Scottish Citylink, where Stagecoach are the minority shareholders, where two services were designated as Citylink Gold, those between the cities of Glasgow and Aberdeen or Inverness.[1]
History
The Goldline brand was introduced to try and win more middle class motorists to bus services. It was initially trialled in two areas, Perth and Warwick, both on routes which has received kick-start funding from the government to help establish the routes. Perth's route 7 used £300,000 of its own money to demonstrate the idea to politicians.[2]
Goldline routes have a luxury specification. Buses have hand stitched leather seats, metallic paint, and special flooring. Drivers wear special uniform and there is a Goldline customer charter.[2]
The service was expanded to Aldershot in early 2009, and Oxford and Cheltenham to Gloucester in September 2009, and is due to be introduced into other areas. The September 2009 extension to Cheltenham and Gloucester on route 94 marked the change of the brand name from "Goldline" to "Stagecoach Gold", as well as the introduction of a new livery with brighter swoops added, as opposed to the previous gold and blue only livery. The reason behind the name change was that Translink had the rights to the "Goldline" name, using it on their Ulsterbus coach services, and Stagecoach had to pay Translink to pass every use of the name by themselves.
Services
Route 1 - Aldershot to Old Dean
via Farnbourgh, Frimley and Camberley
The Aldershot service in the Blackwater Valley - between Aldershot, Farnborough and Camberley - was upgraded to Goldline status from 8 February 2009. It is on Stagecoach in Hants & Surrey's route 1 which runs like the Perth route every 10 minutes Monday to Saturday daytime and every 30 minutes on evenings and Sundays.
Route 7 - Scone to Hillend
via Perth
The service in Perth started on 5 November 2007,[2] and is run by Stagecoach East Scotland. Perth is where the Stagecoach Group is based.[3]
It uses a fleet of eight Alexander Dennis Enviro300s, which were the first examples to be built to the new style.[2] The scheme operates on Perth city route 7, which was in its sixth year of growth following the kick-start funding, with growth continuing at 2% a year.[2]
Route 7 runs between Hillend, Perth city centre and Scone, and runs every 10 minutes on Monday to Saturday daytime, and up to every 30 minutes in the evening and Sundays.[4]
In mid-2012 the Route 7 Coveted to Hybrid buses Using 8 Alexander Dennis Enviro300 / Alexander Dennis Enviro350H.
Route 10 - Lower Tuffley to Cheltenham
via Gloucester and Brockworth
This service began in December 2012. Stagecoach West have a fleet of 19 Scania N230UD vehicles for this route and each vehicle is fitted with comfortable leather seats and complimentary WiFi. Buses run every 10 minutes between Lower Tuffley and Cheltenham, Monday to Saturday and on Sundays, buses are every 20 minutes to Cheltenham. The vehicles all have VX62 registrations and fleet numbers are from 15841 to 15859.
Route 51 - Chichester to Selsey
Route 51 from Chichester to Selsey became a Stagecoach Gold service with effect from 24 February 2013. The service runs every 10–15 minutes in the daytime on Mondays to Saturdays, every 70 minutes on Monday to Saturday evenings, and half-hourly on Sunday daytimes.[5]
Route 66 - Swindon to Oxford
via Shrivenham and Faringdon
Announced on the Stagecoach website, the 66 service between Swindon and Oxford [6] upgraded to Gold status starting on Sunday 22 January 2012. The service also offers free WiFi.The service runs up to every 30 minutes Monday to Saturday and hourly on Sundays.
Route 94 - Cheltenham to Gloucester
via Churchdown
Stagecoach Gold started operations on the 94 route between Cheltenham, Churchdown and Gloucester on 12 September 2009. The new service and buses were launched at Cheltenham Racecourse.[7]
The service uses a fleet of Alexander Dennis Enviro400s branded in Stagecoach Gold livery with the leather seats, suited drivers and other features which appear on all the previously introduced goldline services. The service is run by Stagecoach in Cheltenham.
The route operates every 10 minutes Monday to Saturday daytime and 30 minutes in the evening. Services operate every 20 minutes on Sundays.[8]
Route G1 - Warwick to South Farm
via Woodloes, Percy Estate, Leamington Spa and Whitnash
In Warwick, the service started on 12 November 2007, immediately after the buses were launched by Stagecoach Group chief executive Brian Souter.[9]
The service uses a fleet of 11 Optare Solos, on route 66 which was renumbered G1 following the introduction of Goldline.[9] The service is run by Stagecoach in Warwickshire.
The route operates at a frequency of 8–10 minutes Monday to Saturday daytime and every half hour on evenings and Sundays.[10]
Routes S1, S2, NS1 and NS2 - Carterton to Oxford
via Brize Norton and Curbridge (S1 and NS1) OR Minster Lovell (S2), Witney (S1, S2 and NS1) and Eynsham (S1 and NS1)
In 2010, Stagecoach Oxfordshire introduced the Stagecoach Gold brand on its S1 and S2 services running from Carterton Witney to Central Oxford. Route S1 runs up to every 10 minutes in Monday to Saturday daytimes, every 20 minutes Sunday daytimes, every half-hour Monday to Saturday evenings and every hour on Sunday evenings. Route S2 runs every half-hour on Mondays to Saturday daytimes, and there are a number of express journeys in the rush hours on Monday to Fridays. Night bus NS1 operates from Oxford to Carterton via Witney and Eynsham. There are eight journeys on this route on Friday/Saturday and Saturday/Sunday nights, and one journey on all other nights. Night bus NS2 operates in the reverse direction, as an express bus from Carterton to Oxford without serving Witney. There are six journeys on this route on Friday/Saturday and Saturday/Sunday nights only.[11]
Some of the buses were used prior to the Gold launch for passengers at the Cheltenham racecourse. The buses for this have also been used at the 2010 British Grand Prix event at Silverstone.
Route S3 - Chipping Norton OR Charlbury (OR for certain journeys Chipping Norton AND Charlbury) to Woodstock and Oxford
Route S3 became a Stagecoach Gold route in September 2012, with brand new double decked Alexander Dennis Enviro400 Scania's from Stagecoach Oxfordshire.</ref>
Routes S5 and NS5 - Bicester to Oxford
via Water Eaton and Summertown
At the very end of 2011, and into the start of 2012, the S5 and NS5 service between Bicester and Oxford also received brand new double decked Alexander Dennis Enviro400 Scanias as well as an improved frequency throughout. Route S5 runs up to every 15 minutes on Monday to Saturday daytimes, hourly on Monday to Saturday evenings, half-hourly on Sunday daytimes and evry 90 minutes on Sunday evenings. Route NS5 runs as four journeys from Oxford to Bicester and three journeys from Bicester to Oxford on Friday/Saturday and Saturday/Sunday nights, with two journeys from Bicester to Oxford on Friday/Saturday and Saturday/Sunday nights only. On Monday/Tuesday to Thursday/Friday nights the route provides one journey from Oxford to Bicester.[12]
Route X4 - Peterborough to Northampton & Milton Keynes
via Oundle, Corby, Kettering and Wellinborough
In November 2011 the Stagecoach gold expanded to the X4 route which covers Northamptonshire, Peterborough and Milton Keynes. The X4 gold edition also includes free WiFi for its customers, the route covers Peterborough, Oundle, Corby, Kettering, Wellingborough, Northampton and Milton Keynes.
Scottish Citylink
The Citylink Gold brand is used for two Scottish Citylink services, the G9 between Glasgow and Aberdeen and the G10 between Glasgow and Inverness.[13] Service specifications are similar to that of the bus services branded as Goldline or Stagecoach Gold, but extra services include free wi-fi and free tea and coffee served all day.[14]
References
- ^ "Citylink Gold - More than a Journey". Scottish Citylink. Retrieved 2010-07-18.
- ^ a b c d e Millar, Allan (December 2007). "£2m two-town trial for Stagecoach's new luxury bus brand". Buses Magazine (633): pg6.
- ^ "Stagecoach Group - Key Facts". Stagecoach Group. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
- ^ "Stagecoach targets motorists with £2million trial of Goldline luxury bus concept". Stagecoach Group. 2007-10-29. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
- ^ http://www.stagecoachgold.com/uploads/timetable_33523_51chichester.pdf
- ^ http://www.stagecoachbus.com/localdefault.aspx?Tag=Swindon
- ^ "Stagecoach Gold luxury buses introduced on route 94". Stagecoach in Cheltenham. 2009-09-10. Retrieved 2009-09-12.
- ^ "Stagecoach Gold Route 94 Timetable". Stagecoach Gold. 2009-09-12. Retrieved 2009-09-12.
- ^ a b "Goldline Stagecoach style". Malcolm Crowe. 2007-11-18. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
- ^ "Goldline G1 timetable". Stagecoach in Warwickshire. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
- ^ http://www.stagecoachbus.com/GetUpload.ashx?Id=4116
- ^ http://www.stagecoachbus.com/serviceupdatedetails.aspx?Id=4022
- ^ "Citylink Gold - More than a Journey - times, tickets and prices". Scottish Citylink. Retrieved 2010-07-18.
- ^ "Citylink Gold - More than a Journey - About the Service". Scottish Citylink. Retrieved 2010-07-18.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Stagecoach Goldline |
