National Express Group - Definition and Overview

This article is about the National Express Group; for information on the member of the group which trades under the National Express brand, see National Express article.

National Express Group plc is a UK based transportation group, operating airport, bus and rail services in the UK, the US, Canada and Australia.

History

The National Express brand was first created in 1972 by the state owned National Bus Company (NBC) to bring together the express bus and coach services operated by the various bus operating companies within the NBC group. The National Express network was largely a branding and management exercise, with services continuing to be operated by the various bus companies in the NBC group.

With the privatisation of the NBC in the 1980s, National Express was privatised through a management buy-out in 1988. In 1992, the National Express Group PLC was floated on the London Stock Exchange with a remit to acquire new businesses in the passenger transport market.

In 1993 the group acquired Eurolines and East Midlands Airport, although the latter has since been sold.

In 1995 it acquired West Midlands Travel, the formerly municipally owned bus network of Birmingham and the West Midlands, renaming this Travel West Midlands and starting the brand family of Travel ... local bus operations. Since then Travel Coventry has been spun out of Travel West Midlands, and Travel Dundee and Travel London acquired.

In 1996 the group acquired its first UK rail franchises (Gatwick Express and Midland Mainline). Since then 7 further rail franchises have been added, and the rail now accounts for the largest portion of the groups activity.

The group has also moved into operations outside the UK. At one time it had extensive bus, rail and tram operations in Australia. Most of these have since been disposed of, leaving only one bus operator (Westbus) in Australia. Bizarrely Westbus itself had at the time of aquisition an subsidiary operation in London, and this still continues, with Westbus in London managed from Sydney.

Operating Companies

As of October 2004, the operating companies of the National Express Group are:

• AirLinks (contract bus operation at UK airports)
• ATC (transit and paratransit bus operation in the US)
• c2c (passenger rail operation in the UK)
• Central Trains (passenger rail operation in the UK)
• Durham School Services (school bus operation in the US)
• Eurolines (express bus services between the UK and other European cities)
• Gatwick Express (passenger rail operation in the UK)
• Maintrain (rail train maintenance in the UK)
• Midland Mainline (passenger rail operation in the UK)
• National Express (long distance express and airport bus services in the UK)
• one (passenger rail operation in the UK)
• Silverlink (passenger rail operation in the UK)
• Stansted Express (passenger rail operation in the UK)
• Stewart International Airport (an airport located in New Windsor, New York, US)
• Stock Transportation (school bus operation in Canada)
• Travel Coventry (bus operation in and around Coventry, UK)
• Travel Dundee (bus operation in and around Dundee, UK)
• Travel London (bus operation under contract to London Buses in London, UK)
• Travel Midland Metro (operation of the Midland Metro light rail system in the West Midlands, UK)
• Travel West Midlands (bus operation in Birmingham and the West Midlands, UK)
• WAGN (passenger rail operation in the UK)
• Wessex Trains (passenger rail operation in the UK)
• Westbus (bus operation in both Sydney, Australia and London, UK)

Previously operated rail franchises include:

• ScotRail (Operated until October 2004. Now operated by First Group as First ScotRail.)
• Wales and Borders (Operated until December 2003. Now operated by Arriva as Arriva Trains Wales.)
• M>Train & M>Tram (Handed back to the Victorian State Government after collapse of National Express Group in Australia).
• V/Line Passenger (Handed back to the Victorian State Government after collapse of National Express Group in Australia).

External links

• National Express Group (http://www.nationalexpressgroup.com/)
• History of the National Express Group (http://www.nationalexpressgroup.com/nx/oc/overview/history/)