Bus UK United Automobile Services

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About Bus UK United Automobile Services

Pre Arriva photos of United Automobile Services and Durham District Services


United Automobile Services or United, as it was commonly known, was a major provider of bus services across the North East and North Yorkshire for 80 years or more. Nationalised in 1948, until broken-up and privatised in the late 1980s, the company provided bus-services across England's widest geographical area, stretching from Berwick on Tweed on the Scottish border, south to Filey in East Yorkshire.And west across the Pennines at Carlisle

United was founded in Lowestoft, Suffolk in 1912, with two routes, one in Suffolk and one over 200 miles away between Bishop Auckland and Durham. During the 1920's the company expanded in Norfolk and south Lincolnshire, and in Northumberland, Co. Durham and North Yorkshire. In 1929 control passed to the Tilling Group, the London and North Eastern Railway and B.A.T., and in 1931 the new owners split off the East Anglian operations into a separate company, Eastern Counties Omnibus Company.

United also started the East Midland Motor Company. This came about through the desire to expand. One of their managers, W.T. Underwood, was sent to Clowne (near Chesterfield) to set up a bus company in his own name. The Underwoods company later became East Midland.

United was nationalised in 1948, and controlled first by the British Transport Commission, from 1962 by the Transport Holding Company, and in 1969 by the National Bus Company.

The company ran vehicles from their head office in Darlington and garages across their area, including Durham, Hartlepool, Whitby and Peterlee amongst others. Most of those vehicles were Bristols with Gardner engines and ECW bodies, the LH and VR being common vehicles. Another vehicle commonly used was the Leyland National.

During the mid 1980s,after deregulation,a large number of Mercedes and Dodge S56 minibuses were purchased by United for use on new 'town' services in many areas,some replacing existing United 'big bus' services and others highly competitive with local authorities existing routes (notably the Darlington and the Hartlepool networks). Most were branded with names such as Roadranger (Darlington), Clipper (Whitby), Hoppa (Hartlepool) and Panther (Peterlee) amongst others. Most routes ran to a Hail and Ride system and after some initial controversy,these services were sucessful for United, particularly in Darlington.

To prepare for privatisation, the Northumberland and Scarborough areas were separated off into two new companies, Northumbria Motor Services and Scarborough & District, in 1986, the latter then being transferred to East Yorkshire Motor Services. In 1990, the Cleveland and Middlesbrough operations were renamed Tees & District, with the Stockton depot operating as TMS (Teesside Motor Services). United was purchased by the Caldaire Group, then North East Bus, then Cowie, which was renamed Arriva on April 2nd, 1998.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia.

United Depots and Out Stations
Berwick
Wooler
Alnwick
Rothbury
Morpeth
Ashington
Blyth
Hexham
Allenheads O/S
Whitley Bay
Carlisle (until 4/1/69)
Jesmond
Gallowgate
Sunderland
Peterlee
Durham
Sedgefield
Quarrington Hill
Trimdon Grange (1990)
Fishburn O/S early 90s
Hartlepool
Bishop Auckland
Woodland O/S to 1971
Darlington
Barnard Castle O/S
Middlesbrough
Redcar
Loftus
Whitby
Stainsacre (Whitby) 1990ish - current
Scarborough
Pickering
Richmond
Newton Aycliffe O/S for Newtonian minibuses circa 1988
Northallerton (to 1989)
Northallerton (Romanby) O/S 1989 - 1994 (two sites)
Leyburn O/S 1990s
Hawes O/S closed 1998
Thirsk O/S
Helperby O/S 1987/8
Ripon