Royal Blue Coach Services
Preserved Eastern Coach Works bodied Bristol MW6G in July 2006
|
|
| Parent | National Bus Company |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1880 |
| Ceased operation | 1986 |
| Service area | England |
| Service type | Coach operator |
Royal Blue Express Services was a coach operator in the south and west of England from 1880 until 1986.
The Royal Blue business was founded in 1880 by Thomas Elliott in Bournemouth. The business, at first known as Royal Blue & Branksome Mews, included the hire of every kind of horse-drawn vehicle, as well as coach building, saddlery and blacksmithing. Elliott soon started a four-in-hand stagecoach service to connect Bournemouth to the railway at Holmsley. That service became redundant when the railway was extended to Bournemouth in 1888, but by then Elliott had started running Royal Blue excursions by charabanc and coach around Bournemouth and the New Forest. When Thomas died in 1911, the business was taken over by his sons John and William.
In 1913, Royal Blue purchased its first motor charabanc, and motors rapidly replaced the horses. In 1919 the Elliott Brothers took advantage of a railway strike to start a motor coach service from Bournemouth to London. The service was so successful that the service was increased to twice a week during 1920 and twice daily during 1921. By 1926 Royal Blue was operating 72 coaches.
Until 1928 the express coach service only carried passengers to and from Bournemouth and London, not intermediate points. In 1928 Royal Blue obtained licences to pick up and set down en route, and started services from Bournemouth and London to many more cities, including Birmingham, Bristol and Plymouth. By 1930 Royal Blue was operating 11 routes, an expansion prompted by the expected passage of the Road Traffic Act 1930, which was to regulate competition for passenger road transport.
The Road Traffic Act led coach operators to eliminate competition in two ways: by buying competitors and by reaching agreements with competitors to share services and pool revenues. Royal Blue did both. It acquired competitors in Plymouth (Traveller Coaches) and Portsmouth (Olympic Services), and made co-ordination agreements with Southdown and East Kent (between Margate and Bournemouth), Greyhound Motors (between London and Bristol), Western National (between London and Plymouth) and Southern National (between London and Paignton). In 1934 Royal Blue was one of the founders of Associated Motorways, which co-ordinated coach routes of six operators.
...
Wikipedia