West Coast Motors (legally incorporated as Craig of Campbeltown Limited) is a bus, coach and ferry operator, based in Campbeltown, Scotland. The company also operates under the name '' Borders Buses'' and ''

Glasgow Citybus Glasgow Citybus is a bus company operating services across Glasgow and Dunbartonshire. It is a subsidiary of West Coast Motors. History Glasgow Citybus was formed in November 1999, by Russell Arden. The company was acquired by Campbeltown-based ...

''.

History

The founding of the company dates back to 1921, when Jack Craig commenced a bus operation in Campbeltown. In 1935, William Craig convinced the Royal Mail to allow him to commence an overnight road service from Campbeltown to

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, in lieu of transporting mail by ship. The company remained a Royal Mail contractor until October 2011.About Us
West Coast Motors In 1950, the business purchased Dickies of Tarbert, along with the service between

East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

and

West Loch Tarbert West Loch Tarbert ( gd, Loch A Siar) is a sea loch that separates the northern and southern parts of Harris in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. A small isthmus joins these two areas, on which is to be found the village of Tarbert. The loch contai ...

Piers. In 1955, haulage company West Coast Transport was formed. After purchasing James McPhee Haulage and Ramsays Haulage in 1963, the business was sold to British Road Services in 1966. In 1970, McConnachie's was purchased, resulting in West Coast operating all services in the

Kintyre Kintyre ( gd, Cinn Tìre, ) is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The peninsula stretches about , from the Mull of Kintyre in the south to East and West Loch Tarbert in the north. The region immediately nor ...

area. In 1982, McColls of Benderloch was purchased, along with the Oban to Benderloch and Easdale services. In 1986, Stag Garage of

Lochgilphead Lochgilphead (; gd, Ceann Loch Gilb ) is a town and former burgh in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, United Kingdom, with a population of around 2,300 people. It is the administrative centre of Argyll and Bute. The village lies at the end of Loch G ...

was purchased, along with services to

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

Kilmartin Kilmartin ( gd, Cille Mhàrtainn, meaning "church of Màrtainn") is a small village in Argyll and Bute, western Scotland. It is best known as the centre of Kilmartin Glen, an area with one of the richest concentrations of prehistoric monuments ...

and Ormsary. In 1999, West Coast Motors purchased Oban & District Buses. In 2004, West Coast Motors commenced operating in Bute and

Cowal Cowal ( gd, Còmhghall) is a peninsula in Argyll and Bute, in the west of Scotland, that extends into the Firth of Clyde. The northern part of the peninsula is covered by the Argyll Forest Park managed by Forestry and Land Scotland. The Arroch ...

, after taking over services from Stagecoach, along with depots in

Dunoon Dunoon (; gd, Dùn Omhain) is the main town on the Cowal peninsula in the south of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is located on the western shore of the upper Firth of Clyde, to the south of the Holy Loch and to the north of Innellan. As wel ...

and

Rothesay Rothesay ( ; gd, Baile Bhòid ) is the principal town on the Isle of Bute, in the council area of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It lies along the coast of the Firth of Clyde. It can be reached by ferry from Wemyss Bay, which offers an onward rail ...

.How the West Coast was won and run
''Herald Scotland'' 19 July 2008 In 2006, service between Oban and

Dalavich Dalavich ( gd, Dail Abhaich) is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It lies on the western bank of Loch Awe and has a population of around 70. It is located from the main town and port of Oban, connected by the villages of Kilchrenan and ...

was purchased from L.F. Stewart & Son, along with

Kilberry Kilberry ( gd, Cill Bheiridh) is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is close to the western coast of the district of Knapdale. Kilberry Castle, just to the west of the village, was built in 1497 as a L-plan castle by a cadet branch of ...

and Skipness services from D & E Henderson Hiring. In January 2008, the

City Sightseeing City Sightseeing is an open-top, sightseeing tour bus operator. It provides tour bus services in more than 130 cities around the world. As City Sightseeing has grown and expanded, the company now also provides boat tours, sightseeing trai ...

franchise in Glasgow was purchased, followed in 2009 by the Kintyre Express ferry operation. Kintyre Express later commenced operating a ferry service from Campbeltown to Ballycastle, in 2011. In June 2013, Bowman's Tours on the Isle of Mull was purchased, along with 10 vehicles, and was renamed ''West Coast Tours''. In November 2013, the company acquired Fairline Coaches in Glasgow, along with 16 vehicles.West Coast buys Fairline
''Bus & Coach Professional'' 21 November 2013

Borders Buses

In February 2016, Perryman's Buses of

Berwick-upon-Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census reco ...

was purchased by West Coast Motors. The sale included 45 vehicles, and both depots at Berwick-upon-Tweed and St. Boswells. Later in the same year, Perryman's also took over several services from

First Scotland East First South East & Central Scotland, formerly known as First Scotland East, was an operator of both local and regional bus services in Clackmannanshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, Falkirk, Fife, Midlothian, North Lanarkshire, Scottish B ...

. The remainder of

First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

's operations in the Scottish Borders, including the depot at

Galashiels Galashiels (; sco, Gallae, gd, An Geal Àth) is a town in the Scottish Borders with a population of around 12,600. Its name is often colloquially shortened to "Gala". The town is a major commercial centre for the Borders region with extensive ...

, as well as outstations at

Hawick Hawick ( ; sco, Haaick; gd, Hamhaig) is a town in the Scottish Borders council area and historic county of Roxburghshire in the east Southern Uplands of Scotland. It is south-west of Jedburgh and south-south-east of Selkirk. It is one ...

, Kelso and

Peebles Peebles ( gd, Na Pùballan) is a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was historically a royal burgh and the county town of Peeblesshire. According to the 2011 census, the population was 8,376 and the estimated population in June 2018 wa ...

, was sold to West Coast Motors in March 2017. In July 2017, the business was re-branded as Borders Buses. Re-branding saw the introduction of a new cream and red corporate livery, with a blue stripe along the length of the vehicle. Some vehicles operating on key routes have since received route-specific branding, based on the corporate livery.

Glasgow Citybus

Glasgow Citybus was purchased by West Coast Motors in 2006. The company operates local bus services in Glasgow and

Dunbartonshire Dunbartonshire ( gd, Siorrachd Dhùn Breatann) or the County of Dumbarton is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the west central Lowlands of Scotland lying to the north of the River Clyde. Dunbartonshire borders Pe ...

, with a fleet of around 60 vehicles.

Scottish Citylink

As well as operating local bus services, West Coast Motors has, since 1986, operated long-distance express services on behalf of

Scottish Citylink Scottish Citylink is a long-distance express coach operator in Scotland and Ireland (where it operates as Irish Citylink) and England (where it operates as Stansted Citylink). The company was formed as a subsidiary of Scottish Transport Group i ...

. West Coast Motors mainly serve the route between Glasgow and Campbeltown, but also operate on other routes, serving Dundee,

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

, Fort William, Oban and the Isle of Skye. In May 2008, the company refused to sign a new contract to operate Scottish Citylink routes in the

Highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Albania * Dukagjin Highlands Armenia * Armenian Highlands Australia *Sou ...

, and launched a series of routes in competition. Two months later, the services were withdrawn, with a new contract drawn up between the two companies. West Coast Motors resumed operation of Scottish Citylink services in September 2008. WEST COAST MOTORS IRIZAR 16 OPERATING SERVICE 976 FROM OBAN TO GLASGOW AT INVARARY SCOTLAND SEP 2013

WEST COAST MOTORS IRIZAR 16 OPERATING SERVICE 976 FROM OBAN TO GLASGOW AT INVARARY SCOTLAND SEP 2013

As of April 2022, West Coast Motors operates the following services on behalf of Scottish Citylink: *914, 915 & 916: Glasgow to Fort William and Skye *926: Glasgow to Campbeltown *975/976: Glasgow to Oban *978: Edinburgh to Oban *AIR: Glasgow to

Edinburgh Airport Edinburgh Airport is an airport located in the Ingliston area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was the busiest airport in Scotland in 2019, handling over 14.7 million passengers. It was also the sixth-busiest airport in the United Kingdom by ...

Fleet and operations

As at November 2013, West Coast operates a fleet of 191 buses and coaches (excluding the ''Borders Buses'' operation). As of March 2020, West Coast Motors operate bus and coach services from eleven depots. * Ardrishaig: Glenburn Road, Ardrishaig, Argyll and Bute * Berwick-upon-Tweed: Ramparts Business Park, North Road, Berwick-upon-Tweed,

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

This depot is operated by ''Borders Buses''. * Campbeltown: Benmhor, Campbeltown, Argyll and Bute * Dunoon: Argyll Road,West Coast Motors, Dunoon
–

Google Street View Google Street View is a technology featured in Google Maps and Google Earth that provides interactive panoramas from positions along many streets in the world. It was launched in 2007 in several cities in the United States, and has since expan ...

, March 2010

, Argyll and Bute * Galashiels: Duke Street,

, Scottish Borders * Glasgow: South Street, GlasgowThis depot is operated by ''Glasgow Citybus''. * Glasgow: Charles Street, Glasgow * Mull: Birchwood,

Craignure Craignure (; gd, Creag an Iubhair) is a village and the main ferry port on the Isle of Mull, Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The village is within the parish of Torosay. Geography The village is located around Craignure Bay, on Mull's east coast. ...

, Isle of Mull, Argyll and Bute * Oban: Glengallan Road, Oban, Argyll and Bute *Rothesay: High Road, Ardbeg,

, Argyll and Bute * St. Boswells: Mitchells Yard, Charlesfield, St. Boswells, Melrose, Scottish Borders

Notes

References

External links

Company website
* {{Scottish Ferry Operators, state=collapsed Bus operators in Scotland Coach operators in Scotland Transport companies established in 1923 Companies based in Argyll and Bute Ferry companies of Northern Ireland Ferry companies of Scotland Transport in Argyll and Bute 1923 establishments in Scotland