(09 Feb 2023, 6:15 pm)Adrian wrote How long can you continue to throw money at a private business to generate profits, without an acknowledgement that the current system has completely failed and is dead.

Arriva and Cheshire West/East Councils have gone some way to answering this question by announcing the closure of their Winsford depot and Macclesfield outstation with all services withdrawn.

Cheshire have always been ahead of the curve with decay of bus services so I expect this to be increasingly common elsewhere in the future.

The closures will see the vast majority of bus services in the towns of Northwich, Winsford, Sandbach & Macclesfield withdrawn. At present there are no proposed replacements though it seems likely something will be forthcoming.

It seems no buyer could be found for the operations. Given D&G (Centrebus) bought Arriva’s Cannock depot in 2020, it’s a safe assumption conversations were had about Cheshire but it looks as it isn’t an attractive proposition for them. It is established that their Cannock purchase has hardly been a roaring success. Given Centrebus (D&G & High Peak) already have some ops in the area it may well be the case they pick up some work. Given their two small Cheshire depots are at capacity and they clearly weren’t interested in a ready built facility in Winsford, I’m not convinced they will pick up much work unless it comes with the security of tendering.

Arriva’s statement is that they have already had talks with both local authorities they operate in with no success. Perhaps the authorities are waiting to see what is picked up commercially before seeing what they can afford to tender.

There are really very little options for other replacement operators. Stagecoach have a tiny presence at the very north of Cheshire but given that franchising in Greater Manchester poses a threat to their Stockport HQ, it’s unlikely a thinly spread punt in Cheshire will be attractive. Chester is a long way to operate Macclesfield buses from. 

A region of around 300’000 people about to loose most of their bus services. As you say, the system has completely failed and dead.