Cumberland Motor Services
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public transport (bus services) |
| Predecessor | Whitehaven Motor Service Company |
| Founded | 1921 |
| Fate | Acquired by Stagecoach Holdings in July 1987; later integrated into Stagecoach Group as Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire |
| Headquarters | England, United Kingdom |
Area served | Cumberland and neighboring areas of Lancashire, England |
| Parent | Stagecoach Group |
Cumberland Motor Services operated bus routes across Cumberland and neighboring areas of Lancashire. Established in 1921, it eventually became integrated into the Stagecoach Group, now functioning under the name Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire after separating from Stagecoach North West.
History
The Whitehaven Motor Service Company began operating a bus route between Whitehaven and Cleator Moor in October 1912, utilizing pre-owned Arrol-Johnston vehicles. Over time, the company expanded its network to include destinations such as Carlisle, Cockermouth, Egremont, Keswick, and Maryport. On 1 June 1921, following British Electric Traction subsidiary British Automobile Traction (BAT) acquiring a half share, the company was renamed Cumberland Motor Services.
On 19 March 1926, Cumberland inaugurated the Workington bus station, recognized as the UK's first purpose-built covered bus terminal. Subsequent stations were established in Carlisle, Keswick, Maryport, and Wigton. Notably, the Carlisle and Keswick stations were managed jointly with BAT’s subsidiary Ribble Motor Services.
In November 1948, ownership of Cumberland Motor Services transferred from the Tilling Group to the nationalised British Transport Commission (BTC) after Tilling divested its operations. Following the dissolution of BTC under the Transport Act 1962, control passed to the Transport Holding Company (THC). Later, on 1 January 1969, it became part of the state-owned National Bus Company as mandated by the Transport Act 1968.
Yeowart's controversy
The deregulation introduced by the Transport Act 1980 opened coach and local bus markets throughout the UK. In August 1981, independent operator John Yeowart of Whitehaven, trading as Yeowart's, was granted permission by then Secretary of State for Transport Norman Fowler to operate a town bus service directly competing with Cumberland Motor Services.
In reaction, Cumberland launched a 'bus war' by increasing bus frequency in Whitehaven and branding these additional vehicles with yellow destination displays and 'Havenlink' fleet names to distinguish them from standard services. The situation prompted an appeal by Cumbria County Council to the Divisional Court, contesting Fowler’s decision as unlawful; this delayed Yeowart's plans to expand Sunday and extra Friday services.
In June 1982, the Divisional Court permitted Yeowart's operations to proceed; however, this ruling was reversed by the Court of Appeal in January 1983, which immediately suspended Yeowart's town services. Attempts by Yeowart's to reinstate competing routes were refused by Northern Traffic Commissioners in May 1983. John Yeowart faced criticism for running unauthorized services before enforcement of the ban.
Stagecoach ownership
Prior to deregulation and the dissolution of the National Bus Company (NBC) in 1986, Cumberland expanded its reach into North Cumbria when Ribble Motor Services’ depots at Penrith and Carlisle were transferred to it. The company began adopting the CMS Cumberland brand identity, with Carlisle operations rebranded as CMS Carlislebus.
In July 1987, Stagecoach Holdings purchased Cumberland from NBC, marking its third acquisition of a former NBC subsidiary. Shortly thereafter, CMS Carlislebus introduced second-hand AEC Routemaster buses on competitive routes around Carlisle. The CMS Cumberland fleet maintained its original livery until 1988 before transitioning to Stagecoach's signature 'stripes' design.
Between 1987 and 1989, Cumberland grew through acquisitions including Yeowart's, Kirkpatricks of Bingham, Brownriggs of Egremont, Stephensons of Maryport, and Alan Palmer of Carlisle. In summer 1988, Cumberland controversially deployed surplus buses to pressure Keswick Town Council into redeveloping the unprofitable Keswick bus station in partnership with a developer favored by Stagecoach.
By 1989, Cumberland consolidated Stagecoach’s Cumbrian presence further by absorbing Ribble Motor Services’ depots at Kendal, Barrow-in-Furness, and Ulverston. In July 1990, it introduced an open-top Lake District service connecting Ambleside, Windermere, and Bowness-on-Windermere using Bristol VR buses sourced from Stagecoach Southdown.
During early 1990s financial difficulties, Cumberland implemented wage reductions and replaced aging Leyland Nationals with Alexander-bodied Mercedes-Benz 811D minibuses. By late 1992, Routemasters operating out of Carlisle were withdrawn in favor of Alexander PS-bodied Volvo B10M single-deckers. Operations were centralized into a single depot at Workington in April 1993. Following a Stagecoach Group-wide rebrand in November 2000, these services became part of Stagecoach North West under the name Stagecoach in Cumbria, maintaining a dedicated regional engineering director position.
Fleet
When Stagecoach Holdings acquired Cumberland Motor Services in July 1987, the company managed a total of 230 buses distributed among seven depots located in the northern and western regions of Cumbria.
Cumberland holds the distinction of being the initial operator to introduce the Leyland National integral single-deck bus in March 1972. This prototype vehicle, manufactured locally at British Leyland's Workington facility, quickly became the standard full-size single-deck bus for the National Bus Company.
Following its integration into Stagecoach, Cumberland took delivery of two out of the three 96-seat Alexander-bodied Leyland Olympian tri-axle 'Megadekka' buses ordered in 1990, which were mainly utilized for school transport services.