JOHNSONS Excelbus’ services have been welcomed into the growing Diamond Bus business.
Warwickshire based operator, Johnsons recently made the decision to sell the Excelbus part of their business to Diamond Bus parent company Rotala Plc.
Johnsons will cease operating local bus services, however their coaching and private hire operations will remain unchanged.
This new acquisition further strengthens Diamond’s business in the region as the deal will include taking over operation of all Excelbus local bus services and the X20 Stratford to Solihull and Stratford Park & Rise services.
Diamond have already started operating some services early, such as 150 Redditch to Kings Heath and 149 Redditch to Worcester to help alleviate some of the operational issues Johnsons have suffered.
Customers who will be joining the Diamond network from Johnsons will see some familiar faces onboard as Diamond are employing Johnsons drivers, some operating staff and will be taking on 18 Johnsons vehicles, which will be rebranded into Diamond livery.
There will be some minor timetable changes and more information is available on their website.
Recently Diamond Bus mailed copies of their Redditch Service booklet to households in the area, unfortunately due to the timing of the take over agreement, Excelbus service were not able to be included at the time of print, but Diamond Bus will be releasing extended network information leaflets very soon.
“We are very much looking forward to welcoming customers from Johnsons onboard with us and for those locals who haven’t used the network for a while, we would encourage them to check our new extended network coverage and support your local bus network by moving more journeys to bus services,” said a Diamond spokesperson.
Like for many businesses, the last couple of years have been a tough time for local bus services. Diamond Bus, like many operators have been very grateful for financial support from the Government and local authorities to help with the costs of keeping vital bus services running during the pandemic.
However that funding is now coming to an end.
Diamond is looking for communities to support their local network and rebuild bus patronage back to pre-Covid levels to ensure operators and local authorities can continues to operate services without cuts in the future.
For more information on Diamond Bus services visit www.diamondbuses.com
