North & Western Bus Lines

North & Western Bus Lines[1] was an Australian bus company operating route bus services and charter coaches in Sydney.

North & Western Bus Lines
Remnant bus stop sign belonging to North & Western Bus Lines at Lane Cove North
ParentKen Butt
Ceased operation13 December 1999
HeadquartersGladesville
Service areaNorthern & Western Sydney
Service typeBus services
AllianceParramatta-Ryde Bus Service
Routes18
HubsChatswood station
Parramatta station
Depots1
Fleet96 (December 1999)
Another remnant North & Western Bus Lines bus stop Sign at Lane Cove North

History

The origins of North & Western Bus Lines can be traced back to the late 1920s when Richard Smith formed Hunters Hill Bus Company (HHBC) purchasing route 234 Gladesville to Woolwich wharf service from Walter Bruce. In 1941 the business was sold to John A Gilbert.[2]

In December 1945, route 99 Crows Nest to Greenwich wharf was purchased from Ernie Holley, followed in 1948 by route 75 Gladesville to North Ryde and 205 Ryde to Northern Suburbs Cemetery from Fred Rohr and route 53 Riverview to Chatswood station from Bill Nott. Also in 1948, HHBC commenced operating route 126 Gladesville to Ryde.[2]

In July 1955, route 95 Chatswood station to Gladesville was purchased from Longueville Motor Bus Company, followed in June 1957 by route 85 Eastwood to Midway. Also in 1957, HHBC commenced operating route 141 Ryde to Macquarie Park, followed in November 1963 by route 228 Ryde to Eastwood and in January 1967 by route 43 Chatswood station to Ryde. In September 1973, route 128 Chatswood to Mowbray Road was purchased.[2]

In April 1978 Ken Butt, who had managed the operation for 13 years, purchased HHBC and renamed the operation North & Western Bus Lines. In August 1981 the Eastwood and Epping services of the Cumberland Group were purchased and the operation rebranded as Metro West Bus Lines.[3] The Metro West operations were later incorporated into North & Western in June 1992.[4][5]

The routes acquired were:

In June 1986 routes 54 Chatswood station to Macquarie University and 89 Ryde to Epping via Eastwood were purchased from Deanes Coaches.[3][6][7][3] In August 1989, routes 261 Lane Cove - Wynyard and 264 Northwood - Chatswood station were purchased from Harbour City Coaches.[3][8][9][10]

In January 1995 a new depot was opened next to the State Transit Authority's Ryde depot with the three depots at Gladesville, Meadowbank and Rydalmere consolidated.[11]

In November 1999 an agreement was agreed for Connex to purchase the business. However, after several postponements of the handover date, it was announced that the business had been purchased by the State Transit Authority in December 1999. This was driven by a political desire to introduce Sydney Buses' cheaper fares to several marginal electorates.[3][12][13]

Routes

The routes at the time the business was sold were:

Fleet

North & Western Bus Lines operated 94 buses and two coaches at the time of its sale.[14] Hunter Hill Bus Company was painted in a livery of red lower panels with cream upper panels. North & Western Bus Lines adopted a white with red and blue stripes livery.

References
  1. North & Western Coaches Pty Ltd Australian Securities & Investments Commission
  2. "Ken Butt & Hunters Hill Bus Company" Australian Bus issue 62 March 2014 pages 12-19
  3. "North & Western Bus Lines" Australian Bus issue 63 May 2014 pages 10-17
  4. North & Western Bus Lines Operator Information Australian Bus Fleet Lists
  5. "Private operators" Fleetline issue 218 September 1993 page 193
  6. Sydney Bus Routes 51 - 75 Sydney Bus Routes
  7. Sydney Bus Routes 76-100 Sydney Bus Rouyes
  8. "Harbour City Coaches" Australian Bus Panorama issue 5/3 November 1989 page 50
  9. "Harbour City Coaches" Fleetline December 1989 page 194
  10. "North & Western Bus Lines - Its Routes and Timetables" Fleetline issue 266 May 2000 page 87
  11. "North and Western" Fleetline July 1995 page 136
  12. "State Transit Reaches Parramatta" Fleetline January 2000 page 22
  13. "STA Purchases North & Western and Parramatta-Ryde" Australian Bus Panorama issue 15/4 February 1990
  14. North & Western Bus Lines Australian Bus Fleet Lists
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