Stagecoach Midlands operates most bus routes in Northamptonshire and Warwickshire; the legal name for the company is
Midland Red (South) Ltd.
The company was previously split into ''Midland Red'' in Warwickshire and ''United Counties Omnibus'' in Northampton; however, the two were merged together under the ''Midland Red'' identity in 2021.
In towns, local bus routes are mostly operated under their own branding. These are Connect Kettering, Connect Wellingborough, Corby Star and Daventry Dart, while Northampton has no local name but is part of the Buzz fare scheme.
Depots
*
Corby
Corby is a town in North Northamptonshire, England, located north-east of Northampton. From 1974 to 2021, the town served as the administrative headquarters of the Borough of Corby. At the 2011 Census, the built-up area had a population of 5 ...
(Station Road)
*
Kettering
Kettering is a market and industrial town in North Northamptonshire, England. It is located north of London and north-east of Northampton, west of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene. The name means "the place (or territory) of Ket ...
(Northampton Road)
*
Northampton
Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...
(Main Road)
*
Leamington Spa
Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or simply Leamington (), is a spa town and civil parish in Warwickshire, England. Originally a small village called Leamington Priors, it grew into a spa town in the 18th century following ...
(Station Approach)
*
Nuneaton
Nuneaton ( ) is a market town in the borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth in northern Warwickshire, England, close to the county border with Leicestershire and West Midlands County.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : Nuneaton's ...
(Newtown Road)
*
Rugby
Rugby may refer to:
Sport
* Rugby football in many forms:
** Rugby league: 13 players per side
*** Masters Rugby League
*** Mod league
*** Rugby league nines
*** Rugby league sevens
*** Touch (sport)
*** Wheelchair rugby league
** Rugby union: 1 ...
(Railway Terrace)
*
Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon (), commonly known as just Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is situated on the River Avon, north-we ...
(Avenue Farm)
Brands
Matrix
The Matrix brand was used by Stagecoach Midlands
Nuneaton
Nuneaton ( ) is a market town in the borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth in northern Warwickshire, England, close to the county border with Leicestershire and West Midlands County.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : Nuneaton's ...
depot for routes 55, 56 and 57 between
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...
,
Bedworth
Bedworth ( or locally ) is a market town and unparished area in the borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth, Warwickshire, England.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : It is situated between Coventry, 6 miles (9.5 km) to the south, a ...
and Nuneaton from 2008 until 2015 when the brand was dropped due to the age of the fleet of MAN
Enviro200
The Alexander Dennis Enviro200 (previously known as the TransBus Enviro200) is a midibus that was manufactured by TransBus International and later Alexander Dennis between 2003 and 2018. The original TransBus Enviro200 design was innovative but ...
s that sported this livery.
PrimeLine 48
PrimeLine 48 was the initial name given to the high frequency service 48 between Coventry and Nuneaton via Bedworth. The route has previously run with Dennis Dart vehicles and Alexander Dennis Enviro200s, until February 2018 when the service became a
Stagecoach Gold
Stagecoach Gold is a luxury bus sub-brand used by various Stagecoach bus subsidiaries in the United Kingdom.
Stagecoach Gold (originally Goldline) was launched in 2007 and was designed to attract more middle-class passengers to choose bus travel ...
route, running with long body Alexander Dennis
Enviro200
The Alexander Dennis Enviro200 (previously known as the TransBus Enviro200) is a midibus that was manufactured by TransBus International and later Alexander Dennis between 2003 and 2018. The original TransBus Enviro200 design was innovative but ...
MMCs.
The service operated at a frequency of every 10 minutes Coventry to Nuneaton, with alternate journeys continuing to either
Atherstone
Atherstone is a market town and civil parish in the North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire, England. Located in the far north of the county, Atherstone is on the A5 national route, and is adjacent to the border with Leicestershire which ...
or
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
.
During summer 2020 the 48 service was split into 3 different routes:
*48A for the Nuneaton to Atherstone service,
*48C for the main Coventry to Nuneaton service,
*48L for the Nuneaton to Leicester service
Goldline and Stagecoach Gold
![2015 Optare Solo M990 SR Automatic 4](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/2015_Optare_Solo_M990_SR_Automatic_4.2.jpg)
In Warwick, the ’'Goldline'’’ service started on 12 November 2007, immediately after the buses were launched by Stagecoach Group chief executive Sir Brian Souter.
The service uses a fleet of 11
Optare Solo
The Optare Solo is a low-floor minibus/midibus with one or two doors manufactured by Optare in the United Kingdom since 1998. The Solo name is a play on its low-floor status, the manufacturer marketing its vehicle as having an entrance that is ...
s, on route 66 which was renumbered G1 following the introduction of Goldline.
From mid-2015 this fleet of Optare Solos was displaced by 14 new Optare Solo SR vehicles, with a revised branding and livery to reflect the "Stagecoach Gold" brand name rather than the outdated "Goldline" name. It has since lost its Gold branding and is numbered service 1.
The route operated at a frequency of around every 10 minutes Monday to Saturday daytime and every half-hour on evenings and Sundays.
With effect from 2 November 2020, the service level was slightly reduced to every 12 minutes.
Services X46 and X47 also run as Stagecoach Gold services, running from
Northampton
Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...
to
Wellingborough
Wellingborough ( ) is a large market and commuter town in the unitary authority area of North Northamptonshire in the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, 65 miles from London and from Northampton on the north side of the River Nen ...
,
Rushden
Rushden is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in North Northamptonshire, England, around east of Northampton. The parish is on the border with Bedfordshire, north of Bedford.
The parish of Rushden covers an area of some ...
,
Higham Ferrers
Higham Ferrers is a market town and civil parish in the Nene Valley in North Northamptonshire, England, close to the Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire borders. It forms a single built-up area with Rushden to the south and has an estimated populati ...
and
Raunds
Raunds is a market town in North Northamptonshire, England. It had a population of 9,379 at the 2021 census.
Geography
Raunds is situated north-east of Northampton. The town is on the southern edge of the Nene Valley and surrounded by ar ...
. Buses did once extend further to
Thrapston
Thrapston is a market town in North Northamptonshire, England. It was the headquarters of the former East Northamptonshire district, and at the time of the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census, had a population of 6,239.
The town's name mea ...
, though this part of the route was dropped due to low passenger numbers.
The Stagecoach Gold Brand was Dropped in 2020 with the changes in the brand.
Connect Kettering
''Connect Kettering '' was the brand name of six bus routes in the town of
Kettering
Kettering is a market and industrial town in North Northamptonshire, England. It is located north of London and north-east of Northampton, west of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene. The name means "the place (or territory) of Ket ...
in
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. . Before ''Connect Kettering '' all buses were part of Stagecoach and all buses had the Stagecoach livery prior to gaining this livery, they are now been repainted to the standard Stagecoach colors.
Connect Wellingborough
''Connect Wellingborough'' is the brand name of eight bus routes in the town of
Wellingborough
Wellingborough ( ) is a large market and commuter town in the unitary authority area of North Northamptonshire in the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, 65 miles from London and from Northampton on the north side of the River Nen ...
in
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. The buses are operated by Stagecoach and as of 21 October 2019
Grant Palmer. When the brand was established in 2006, the eight routes had new route numbers (which can be identified with 'W'), buses with new green colours, new bus stop signage, and later daily finishing times. Before ''Connect Wellingborough'' all buses were part of Stagecoach, all buses had the Stagecoach livery, and some routes finished at around 1500. There now exists no Connect Wellingborough name, and all local Wellingborough routes are now run by vehicles in standard Stagecoach livery.
Corby Star
''Corby Star'' is the brand name for a bus service operated in the town of
Corby
Corby is a town in North Northamptonshire, England, located north-east of Northampton. From 1974 to 2021, the town served as the administrative headquarters of the Borough of Corby. At the 2011 Census, the built-up area had a population of 5 ...
in
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. Services run to all estates in Corby, with opportunities to transfer to Stagecoach services bound for
Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes ( ) is a city and the largest settlement in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of its urban area was over . The River Great Ouse forms its northern boundary; a tributary ...
,
Peterborough
Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...
and
Kettering
Kettering is a market and industrial town in North Northamptonshire, England. It is located north of London and north-east of Northampton, west of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene. The name means "the place (or territory) of Ket ...
. As of 2018 however, Stagecoach Midlands Corby depot was reduced to being an outstation for local routes only, with the main operations for Corby running from the Kettering depot. The amount of Corby Star liveried vehicles has therefore decreased, though it is currently the only sub-brand kept by Stagecoach, with Connect Wellingborough, Connect Kettering and Daventry Dart no longer existing.
Daventry Dart
![Stagecoach Midlands Daventry branded Enviro200](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Stagecoach_Midlands_Daventry_branded_Enviro200.jpg)
''Daventry Dart'' was the name for six bus routes in and around
Daventry
Daventry ( , historically ) is a market town and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority in Northamptonshire, England, close to the border with Warwickshire. At the 2021 Census Daventry had a population of 28,123, making ...
,
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
, England. Most services under this brand ironically operated using
Dennis Dart
The Dennis Dart is a rear-engined single-decker midibus chassis that was introduced by Dennis Specialist Vehicles of Guildford, England in 1989, replacing the Dennis Domino. Initially built as a high-floor design, In 1996 the low-floor second ...
vehicles. The sub-brand has however since been dropped, with buses receiving only 'D' suffixed route numbers to indicate that they serve the Daventry area.
Daventry local timetable, correct as of August 2018
The X4
The Stagecoach bus route X4, X4 was formerly branded as "Cross Country", using the same name as Stagecoach East
Stagecoach East is the divisional name for the bus operations of the Stagecoach Group in eastern England.
History
Under the control of the National Bus Company, ''Cambus Ltd.'' was set up when the Eastern Counties Omnibus Company was split in ...
route X5 which it once connected with at Milton Keynes. The X4 became a Stagecoach Gold route in 2011. However, as of July 2018, buses have stopped running between Northampton and Milton Keynes in favour of the X7 service from Leicester running this part of the route, replaced by X6 in July 2019.
References
External links
Stagecoach Bus
{{Leicestershire buses, state=expanded
Stagecoach Group bus operators in England