FirstGroup

FirstGroup plc

FirstGroup operates bus, coach, rail & tram services in the United Kingdom, United States, Canada & Ireland
Overview
Owner	Publicly owned (LSE: FGP)
Locale	United Kingdom United States Canada Ireland
Transit type	bus, coach, rail, tram & yellow school bus
Chief executive	Tim O'Toole (CEO) Martin Gilbert (Chairman)
Headquarters	Aberdeen, Scotland
Operation
Began operation	April 1995

FirstGroup^[2] is a British transport group, registered and operating in the United Kingdom. The company also operates transport services in Ireland, Canada and the United States. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.^[3]

History

Origins

Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B9TL in September 2012

FirstGroup originated from the deregulation of bus services in the United Kingdom in 1986, whereby private companies purchased nationalised and municipal bus operators.^[4]

In September 1986 the Somerset based services of the Bristol Omnibus Company that were rebranded in 1985 as Badgerline were purchased by a management buyout. As Badgerline Group, it expanded through acquisition purchasing 12 other formerly nationalised bus companies in England and Wales. Badgerline Group became a public limited company in November 1993.

In January 1989 Grampian Regional Transport, the bus operator in Aberdeen owned by Grampian Regional Council, was privatised in a management buyout led by its then general manager Moir Lockhead.^[5] As GRT Bus Group, it expanded through acquisition purchasing six former nationalised bus companies in England and Scotland. GRT Bus Group became a public limited company in April 1994.

In April 1995 FirstBus was formed through the merger of the Badgerline and GRT Bus Groups, with fleets in England, Wales and Scotland. Aberdeen was selected as the headquarters.^[6]

At the time of the merger, FirstBus had 5,600 buses, 4,000 of which came from Badgerline.^[7] Badgerline's Trevor Smallwood became chairman of FirstBus, while GRT head Moir Lockhead became deputy chairman and chief executive.^[7]

Expansion

FirstBus continued the policy of growth by acquisition acquiring former council owned operations and companies formerly owned by English, Welsh and Scottish nationalised operators. FirstBus went on to acquire larger urban metropolitan operators by taking advantage of the privatisation of the PTE bus operations and the privatisation of London bus services. FirstBus acquired GM Buses North in Manchester and Strathclyde Buses in Glasgow in 1996, Mainline in South Yorkshire and CentreWest in London in 1997, and Capital Citybus in London in 1998.^[7]

First Great Western High Speed Train at Penzance in October 2009

The company was renamed FirstGroup in December 1997^[2] after the company moved into railways in February 1996 with the Privatisation of British Rail, through a 24.5% shareholding in Great Western Holdings that won the Great Western and North Western franchises, and a 100% shareholding in First Great Eastern that ran the Great Eastern franchise from January 1997. In March 1998 FirstGroup purchased the 75.5% shares in Great Western Holdings it did not already own and rebranded the franchises First Great Western and First North Western.^[8][9][10]

In September 1998 FirstGroup made its first overseas foray when New World First Bus commenced operating bus services in Hong Kong formerly operated by China Motor Bus. FirstGroup had a 26% shareholding in the joint venture.^[11] In May 2000 FirstGroup sold its shares to joint venture partner New World Development.^[12]

In September 1999 FirstGroup purchased Ryder Public Transport Services, a provider of school bus transportation in the United States.^[13]

In May 2000 FirstGroup began operating the London Tramlink concession under contract to Transport for London.^[14]

In August 2003 FirstGroup purchased GB Railways which owned Anglia Railways and GB Railfreight and held 80% of the shares in Hull Trains.^[15] Having not been shortlisted for the Greater Anglia Rail Franchise, this gave FirstGroup another chance to bid. However it was unsuccessful and the franchise was awarded to National Express from April 2004 including the services operated by First Great Eastern.

In November 2003 FirstGroup purchased a 90% shareholding in Irish coach operator Aircoach.^[16] The remaining 10% was purchased in 2005.

In February 2004 FirstGroup's joint venture with Keolis commenced operating the First TransPennine Express rail franchise, FirstGroup having a 55% shareholding.^[17][18] In April 2004 FirstGroup commenced operating the First Great Western Link franchise^[19] and in October 2004 the First ScotRail franchise.^[20] In December 2004 the remainder of First North Western passed to Northern Rail, some services having already been transferred to Arriva Trains Wales and FirstTranspennine Express.

In April 2006 FirstGroup commenced operating the First Capital Connect franchise^[21] and a renewed First Great Western franchise that had been expanded to include the Thames Trains and Wessex Trains franchises.^[22][23]

Greyhound Prevost coach at Toronto Coach Terminal in April 2009

In February 2007 FirstGroup agreed to buy the US-based firm Laidlaw, an operator of inter-city coaches and yellow school buses across North America, for £1.9 billion (US$3.7 billion). This also gave it a controlling stake in Greyhound Lines, the largest bus operator in North America. The Greyhound name and the names of Canadian subsidiaries of Greyhound Canada were retained, and all other Laidlaw-owned services in the United States and Canada were rebranded under the First or Greyhound names, except for Voyageur Colonial and Grey Goose in Canada.^[24]

In May 2007 FirstGroup purchased some bus services in the Rhine-Neckar region of Germany.

In January 2009 DSBFirst, FirstGroup's joint venture with Danish State Railways commenced operating the Oresundtrain rail franchise from Helsingør and Nivå in Denmark along the Kystbanen line and over the Øresund Bridge to Malmö, Växjö, Kalmar, Karlskrona and Gothenburg in Sweden. FirstGroup had a 25% shareholding in the Danish business and 20% in the Swedish business.^[25] By March 2011 this was 30%.^[26]

In June 2009 FirstGroup made a takeover offer for fellow transport operator National Express Group, which was struggling with debt at the time and was struggling to hold onto its National Express East Coast rail franchise. This was rejected, National Express saying it did not "consider it appropriate" at the time to discuss a takeover. FirstGroup believed that there was "significant industrial and commercial logic" for a merger, but National Express wished to focus on its own initiatives.^[27]

Recent years

In June 2010 FirstGroup sold its railfreight business First GBRf to the Eurotunnel Group for £31 million,^[28][29] ending the group's involvement in rail freight transport.^[30]

In September 2010 former London Underground managing director Tim O'Toole, already a board member since May 2009 and Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Chief Executive since June 2010, was announced as the successor to retiring group Chief Executive Officer Moir Lockhead with effect from 31 March 2011.^[31][32]

In September 2011 FirstGroup's German bus operations were sold to Marwyn European Transport.^[33]

In December 2011 DSBFirst ceased operating the Swedish part of the operation after difficulties encountered by Danish State Railways over cross subsidies.^[34][35][36]

In July 2012 FirstGroup provided bus and coach services for the London 2012 Olympic Games. This involved the provision of venue shuttle and park and ride services, services connecting peripheral park and ride sites on the M25 with the Olympic Park and Ebbsfleet, and a nationwide network of express coaches to the Olympic Park and the Weymouth and Portland sailing venue. The services required around 900 vehicles in total, although some were sub-contracted.^[37]

In June 2013 most of the First London bus operations were sold to Go-Ahead London, Metroline and Tower Transit.^[38]

In April 2015 FirstGroup lost the ScotRail franchise, which is now run by Abellio ScotRail.

Operations

First Hull Trains Class 180 Adelante at Peterborough in March 2011

FirstGroup is Britain's largest bus operator, running more than 20% of all local bus services. A fleet of nearly 9,000 buses carries some 2.9 million passengers a day in more than 40 major towns and cities. FirstGroup also runs passenger rail services in the UK. Passenger rail franchises consist of Great Western Railway and First TransPennine Express (55% shareholding). It also operates Hull Trains (80% shareholding), a non-franchised open access passenger train service. FirstGroup operates tram services on the London Tramlink network carrying approximately 24 million passengers a year on behalf of Transport for London.^[39]

In North America, FirstGroup has several divisions: First Student, which runs school bus routes;^[40] First Transit, which holds many city and county public transport contracts;^[41] and First Vehicle Services, which maintains vehicles for many corporations, organisations and local governments, including the other First divisions and Greyhound lines.^[42] Canadian operations are provided through its First Student Canada subsidiary, which operates school buses and fulfills public transport contracts.

FirstGroup owns and operates the Aircoach service in Dublin,^[43] linking Dublin Airport with the city centre, the south side of Dublin, Greystones and Bray as well as long-distance express services runs to Cork and Belfast. Aircoach also operates car park shuttles at Dublin Airport. Until 2009 Aircoach did not carry corporate branding. Buses introduced since January 2009 on Aircoach carry a FirstGroup logo alongside the Aircoach logo.

Corporate branding and liveries

First bus in corporate livery in Bishops Lydeard in 2014

Buses of Somerset liveried Alexander ALX400 bodied Dennis Trident 2 in Taunton in February 2014

FirstGroup has always had a consistent brand and uses the First brand for most of its operations. FirstBus began to apply a standard corporate typeface to its fleet names in the late 1990s, introducing the stylised f logo depicting a road. A corporate white, pink and blue livery was introduced, nicknamed "Barbie", to new buses, while further bus company acquisitions continued. Inherited bus fleets were initially left in their original colours with First fleet names, with the intention that the Barbie scheme would stand for a set service quality. Later older buses received a modified "Barbie 2" livery.

As part of its corporate branding, First subsequently removed all local branding for its bus services, buses simply carried the 'First' brand, although each company still operated independently. In 2012, the group began to introduce a new purple, white and lilac livery to its bus fleets, which also reinstated local branding.^[44] In January 2014, the company rebranded its First Somerset & Avon operations in Bridgwater and Taunton as The Buses of Somerset, using a two-tone green livery.^[45][46]

First TransPennine Express and Hull Trains carry a predominantly blue livery, including white, pink and purple. This was also used by First Great Western until 20 September 2015, when the First Great Western operation was re-branded as Great Western Railway, with a new logo and dark green livery paying homage to the original Great Western Railway.^[47]

London Tramlink operations are painted in white, green and blue as per Transport for London requirements. In Scotland, First ScotRail operated with a blue livery with white saltire markings on the carriage ends, as mandated by the Scottish Government's transport agency Transport Scotland.^[48]

Similarly, in North America, all owned and operated services are operated under the First or Greyhound brands except in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Manitoba for regulatory reasons, and vehicles operated under contract to public agencies, which carry the branding of the agency that owns the particular bus. All American subsidiaries of Greyhound Lines are now operated under the Greyhound name.^[49] Greyhound UK services in the United Kingdom were painted in the same navy blue and grey livery introduced to the American Greyhound fleet in 2009.

Current operating companies

Bus & coach services

United Kingdom

Marshall bodied Dennis Dart in Bromborough in March 2007 in the original Barbie livery

Leyland Olympian in Chester in August 2007 in the modified Barbie livery

• First Aberdeen (formerly First Grampian)
• First Berkshire & The Thames Valley (formerly First Beeline)
• First Bristol & First Somerset & Avon (formerly First Cityline, First Badgerline)
• First Cymru
• First Essex (formerly First Eastern National, First Thamesway)
• First Glasgow (formerly First Kelvin and First Greater Glasgow)
• First Greater Manchester
  • First Pioneer (part of First Greater Manchester)
• First Hampshire & Dorset (formerly First Southampton, First Provincial and the Dorset operations of First Southern National)
• First Leicester
• First Midland Red (sometimes referred to as First Wyvern)
• First Norfolk & Suffolk (Sometimes referred to as First Eastern Counties)
  • Ipswich Rapid Transit
• First Northern Ireland
• First Potteries (operating in Staffordshire and South Cheshire, formerly First PMT/PMT Limited)
• First Scotland East (formerly First SMT, First Borders and First Midland Bluebird)
  • First Falkirk
  • First East Lothian
  • First Bluebird
• First South West (formerly First Western National & North Devon Red Bus)
  • The Buses of Somerset includes Somerset services of the former First Southern National
• First South Yorkshire
• First West Yorkshire
  • First Bradford (part of First West Yorkshire)
  • First Calderdale & Huddersfield (part of First West Yorkshire)
  • First Leeds (part of First West Yorkshire)
• First York (including the York Park & Ride)

• First Rail Support provide emergency and planned rail replacement transport to train operating companies using First and non First Transport through its 24-hour control room in Simonstone, Lancashire.

Ireland

Aircoach Jonckheere SHV bodied Volvo in Greystones

• Aircoach

Canada

First Student in 34th Street, New York in July 2006

• First Student (school, charter bus and public transit services)
• Greyhound Canada (intercity bus services)
  • Grey Goose Bus Lines
  • Vancouver Island Coach Lines
  • Voyageur Colonial Bus Lines

United States

• First Transit (bus and rapid transit)
• First Student (school bus services)
• Greyhound (intercity bus services)
  • BoltBus (a discount operator competing with Megabus, joint venture with Peter Pan Bus Lines)

Rail services

United Kingdom

First TransPennine Express Class 185 Desiro at Manchester Piccadilly in July 2011

• First TransPennine Express joint venture with Keolis (55% shareholding - sole shareholder from April 2016)
• Great Western Railway
• Heathrow Connect joint venture with Heathrow Airport Holdings (until May 2018) ^[50]
• Hull Trains (80% shareholding)
• London Tramlink

Services formerly operated

FirstGroup Rhein-Neckar Mercedes-Benz Citaro in Mannheim in August 2008

Bus & coach services

Germany

• FirstGroup Rhein-Neckar sold September 2011 to Marwyn European Transport

Hong Kong

• New World First Bus 26% stake sold May 2000 to New World Development

First Great Eastern Class 312 at Kirby Cross in March 2004

United Kingdom

• First Northampton ceased 14 September 2013
• First London from March 1997 until September 2013, most operations sold to Go-Ahead London, Metroline and Tower Transit, remainder ceased upon expiry of contracts in September 2013
• Greyhound UK coach services between September 2009 and December 2015

Rail services

United Kingdom

• First Great Eastern from January 1997 until April 2004, incorporated into Greater Anglia franchise subsequently operated by National Express as One
• First North Western from March 1997 until December 2004, operations split between Arriva Trains Wales, First TransPennine Express and Northern Rail
• First GBRf from August 2003 until sold in June 2010 to Eurotunnel Group, rebranded as GB Railfreight
• First Capital Connect from April 2006 until September 2014, succeeded by Govia Thameslink Railway
• First ScotRail from October 2004 until March 2015, succeeded by Abellio ScotRail & Caledonian Sleeper

Denmark & Sweden

• DSBFirst joint rail venture with Danish State Railways (30% shareholding)

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to FirstGroup.

• Official website
• Wikinvest:FGP-LN
• FirstGroup companies grouped at OpenCorporates

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Current bus operators of Scotland National Magic Bus Megabus National Express Scottish Citylink (Citylink Gold) Regional Blue Bus of North Lanarkshire First Aberdeen First Glasgow First Scotland East Glasgow Citybus Lothian Buses McGill's Bus Services Stagecoach Bluebird Stagecoach in Fife Stagecoach in the Highlands Stagecoach in Perth Stagecoach Strathtay Stagecoach West Scotland West Coast Motors Xplore Dundee See also: Transport Scotland