Stagecoach Burnley & Pendle
On 1st April 1996 Pendle Council sold its share of B&P to Stagecoach Holdings and on 7th March 1997 Burnley Council also sold its share and Stagecoach took over completely on 10th March. The managing director Mr. Bill Jelpke and engineering director Mr. Ian Lord left immediately and an Operations Manager took control reporting directly to the Ribble Managing Director at Preston . Initially the company was renamed "Stagecoach Burnley & Pendle" and the existing Ribble operations from Queensgate kept their separate identity, but on 1st May 2000 the "Burnley & Pendle" suffix was dropped in favour of "Ribble" on all the fleet.
There was a great deal of resentment from the workforce to the "sell out" by the councils and the local branch of the TGWU were at loggerheads with the Stagecoach management from day one. The main source of discontent was the reduction of the hourly rate of pay, the abolition of an overtime rate and spreadover pay. An exodus of drivers began and staff turnover increased.
Stagecoach Ribble already had a small operation at Queensgate since the closure of the Ribble depot on Centenary Way, Burnley. The main routes operated were the X43 Colne to Manchester, the 152 Burnley to Preston and the 10 Burnley to Higherford (operated jointly with Burnley & Pendle Transport). Stagecoach had obviously decided to keep only the core profitable routes and so began to dispose of the subsidised tendered services and other less profitable routes. Casualties included the 236 Burnley to Blackburn, 475 Ramsbottom to Bury (operation transferred to Ribble Bolton), 14 & 15 Colne Town Services, 30 & 31 Barnoldswick Town Services, 65 Burnley - Higham - Nelson, 98 Burnley - Hospital - Brierfield - Valley Mills. Other services were consolidated or revamped. Border Buses were the immediate beneficiaries of most of the discarded local services.
Stagecoach also didn't seem to want to retain the Whizzard Minibuses at Burnley. Some were sold off or transferred to other depots. Others were repainted in corporate livery and used for a short time but were then replaced by Volvo B6 midibuses transferred from Manchester & Blackburn depots.
No. 259, L669 MSF, Volvo B6 Brownhill Avenue, Burnley
A great deal of 'asset stripping' took place at Queensgate. Anything surplus to requirements was sold off. This included the old Leyland Hippo breakdown vehicle, and its intended replacement, a purpose built MAN recovery vehicle. The two Ford Transit vans and the Land Rover fitted with hydraulic platform for depot maintenance also went along with much of the engineering workshop machinery, i.e. lathes etc. A purpose built tachometer testing facility was also sold off.
The cash handling facility at Queensgate was closed with the introduction of four cash counting machines (two at Queensgate and two at Burnley). Ribble already had one at Queensgate for their existing operation.
The portakabins containing the existing offices situated in in the depot yard were also sold off and the reduced office staff took up residence in refurbished offices within the depot building. A casualty of this move was the Sports & Social Club Gym. The gym equipment was stored away for future use.
Stagecoach had promised to invest heavily in new buses and during 1997 10 Volvo B10M /Alexander PS type and 10 Volvo Olympian/Alexander R type were delivered. From then onwards a lot of vehicle movement between Stagecoach fleets in Lancashire was common and a monthly bulletin was issued to allow depots to keep track of the whereabouts of buses.
Line up of newly arrived Volvo
B10M/Alexander 473-6.
No. 2245, P275 VPN, Volvo Olympian on loan
from Ribble, Preston depot, prior to delivery of new batch (2246-55) for Burnley.
Some unusual buses came to Queensgate including a batch of four Leyland Swifts with Reeve Burgess bodies which were new to Hyndburn Transport. Among those that stayed were five MCW Metrobuses which were new to GM Buses South and were transferred from Stagecoach Manchester.
Line up of Olympians 2277,73,84 & MCW Metrobus 1225
Inside Queensgate August 4th 1999
Stagecoach management decreed that more parking space was needed at Queensgate so in September 2000 the toilet and canteen block was demolished followed by the roof of the main roadway behind it. A new canteen, locker room and toilets were created in rooms formerly used by the bodyshop under the refurbished offices.
Demolition
October 2nd. 2000
The old drive though bus wash was removed and replaced by a new type of wash which operated around a stationery vehicle. A second bus wash was later installed. Improvements were also made to the covered yard, the old paint and bodyshops and a new paintshop was created next to the second bus wash. However, no sooner was this work completed, things changed again!
Demolition
completed October 22nd 2000
On 15th April 2001 Stagecoach sold Queensgate depot to Blazefield Holdings and Burnley & Pendle Travel Ltd. was created and the return of a red and cream livery was assured. However the deal agreed meant that Stagecoach retained the cream of the fleet and shipped into Queensgate and its sister company Lancashire United, (created from the Ribble depots Clitheroe, Blackburn & Bolton), an assortment of Leyland Lynx and Dennis Javelins from Midland Red and Red & White, South Wales and Leyland Atlanteans & Olympians from other Ribble depots at Preston and Chorley.
Last
day of Stagecoach Operation April 14th. 2001