Crosville Motor Services

Crosville Motor Services
Company type	Bus company
Industry	Public transport
Founded	October 27, 1906; 120 years ago in Chester, England
Founder	George Crosland Taylor, Georges de Ville
Fate	Split and sold to various companies after deregulation in 1986
Headquarters	Chester, England, United Kingdom
Area served	North-west England, North and Mid-Wales
Products	Bus services

Crosville Motor Services operated as a bus company serving north-west England along with north and mid-Wales.

History

Established on 27 October 1906 in Chester by George Crosland Taylor and Georges de Ville, the Crosville Motor Company was originally set up to manufacture motor vehicles. The company’s name was derived from a combination of its founders’ surnames.

By 1909, Crosville introduced its inaugural bus route connecting Chester and Ellesmere Port. By 1929, its network extended throughout the Wirral Peninsula and into regions of Lancashire, Cheshire, and Flintshire.

Following the enactment of the Railways (Road Transport) Act 1928, railway companies opted to acquire existing bus operators rather than compete against them. In February 1929, the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) purchased Crosville for £400,000, finalizing the acquisition in November. Subsequently, LMS (Crosville) expanded by acquiring Holyhead Motors and UNU Motor Services based in Caernarfon.

Soon after, LMS entered into a cross-shareholding agreement with the Tilling Group and British Automobile Traction (T&BAT), merging LMS (Crosville) with T&BAT’s Royal Blue service from Llandudno. On 15 May 1930, the company was rebranded as Crosville Motor Services, consolidating regional bus operations under joint ownership.

Growth continued through the purchase of smaller firms in North Wales such as White Rose Motor Services of Rhyl, Red Dragon of Denbigh, Burton of Tarporley, North Wales Silver Motors, and Llangoed Red Motors. Additionally, on 1 May 1933, Western Transport—the northern Welsh operation of the Great Western Railway—was integrated into Crosville.

In 1930, All-British Travels Ltd was created by coach operators George Taylor (Chester), Alfred Harding (Birkenhead), and J.W. Scott (Edinburgh) with the goal of operating express coach services connecting Liverpool, Llandudno, and London under the 'All-British Line' brand. The Liverpool to London express route commenced in April 1930; notably, Crosville had launched a similar service in 1929. Challenges arose in coordinating with All-British Travels, resulting in its sale to Red & White Services in January 1933. The last Liverpool-London service ended by September that year. Taylor continued his involvement in coach excursions and automobile sales until 1972.

Second World War

Although initial reductions were made to timetables at the outbreak of the Second World War, by its conclusion Crosville had boosted passenger numbers by 50% and increased revenue by 90%. With North Wales largely spared from Luftwaffe air raids, numerous shadow factories and munitions facilities were established, transforming previously quiet villages and significantly shifting service demand—for instance, over 200 buses were required daily just for ROF Wrexham, Marchwiel.

This heightened demand influenced fleet strategy, leading to expansion mainly through second-hand double-deck buses due to manufacturers focusing on wartime production. On 3 December 1942, Crosville became part of the Tilling Group, adopting their green livery and favoring Bristol chassis instead of those from Leyland.

Emerging financially robust with solid reserves and property holdings, Crosville emphasized replacing double-decker vehicles but was limited by Tilling Group policies that discouraged investment in coaches. Meanwhile, independent coach operators increased competition. By the time nationalization occurred under the British Transport Commission on 1 January 1948, these independents had secured strong market footholds.

1948–67

Following World War II, new Bristol double-decker buses became the norm throughout Tilling/BET fleets, facilitating post-war expansion until around 1950 when increased private car ownership led to a drop in passenger numbers. The 1956 Suez Crisis, combined with workforce shortages caused by inadequate wages, further reduced rural routes and cut Sunday services by half. Except for targeted growth initiatives such as the 1965 launch of the "Cymru Coastliner" route connecting Chester and Caernarfon—which was introduced to substitute rail lines eliminated by the Beeching Axe—the network steadily contracted.

1968–85

The Transport Act of 1968 established the National Bus Company (NBC) and permitted local councils to subsidize rural bus services. Although operational costs were lowered through the introduction of one-person-operated buses, Crosville recognized that 196 routes required financial assistance.

After the 1971 transfer of North Western Road Car Company routes within Greater Manchester to the Passenger Transport Executive, NBC allocated the remaining NWRCC operations between Trent and Crosville. In March 1972, Crosville expanded its fleet by acquiring 119 vehicles and depots located in Northwich, Macclesfield, and Biddulph. Further consolidation occurred with Crosville taking over West Wales routes from Western Welsh, which included depots at New Quay, Newcastle Emlyn, and Lampeter.

Throughout the 1980s, Crosville focused on streamlining its network amid escalating financial losses—£1 million in 1980 and £2 million by 1981. While rebranding local services in metropolitan regions helped slow revenue declines, it was insufficient to prevent ongoing deficits.

Deregulation

On 13 February 1986, due to concerns that the four largest NBC companies were too dominant to foster competition following deregulation, the Secretary of State for Transport ordered their division. As a result, Crosville was split into separate English and Welsh operations. Both entities were eventually acquired by the Drawlane Group.

Crosville Cymru largely remained intact under this restructuring, whereas English operations were divided between Midland Red North and a newly formed North Western company headquartered in Liverpool. This change effectively reversed earlier territorial acquisitions made by Crosville in eastern Cheshire from the original North Western following its dissolution in 1972.

On 25 March 1988, Crosville was purchased by ATL (Western). The company changed hands again in 1989 when National Express acquired it before selling it to the Drawlane Group in 1991. Drawlane reorganized as British Bus in 1992. British Bus was subsequently bought by the Cowie Group on 1 August 1996 and operated as Arriva Cymru until merging with Arriva North West in February 2002 to create Arriva North West & Wales.

The remaining Crosville services on the Wirral Peninsula and in Chester were sold in February 1990 to Potteries Motor Traction (PMT), which maintained the Crosville branding until rebranding as First Chester & The Wirral a decade later. Following financial difficulties, depots in Chester, Rock Ferry, and Wrexham were sold to Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire in December 2012.

Revival

A fresh operator resurrected the Crosville Motor Service brand, providing transport services in Weston-super-Mare between 2011 and 2018. This enterprise utilized a combination of contemporary buses alongside a collection of heritage vehicles, which included original buses from the Crosville fleet.

Although the names Crosville Cymru and Crosville Wales Limited continue to be officially registered, they remain inactive and have no connection with Arriva. Likewise, Gwasanaethau Cerbyd Crosville Motor Services Limited—incorporating Welsh words for "Vehicle" and "Services"—is also listed as dormant within Wales.

External links

History of Crosvile Motor Services 1911–1990