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Grampian Regional Transport and Aberdeen Corporation Transport redirect here.
First Aberdeen
A First Aberdeen Volvo B10BLE, Wright Renown, X601 NSS, on route 16 going to Northfield on 16, Orange Line, seen at Union Street.
ParentFirstGroup
Founded1998
Headquarters395 King Street, Aberdeen
LocaleAberdeen
Service typebus
Routes24
WebsiteFirst Aberdeen

First Aberdeen Ltd is the main bus company serving Aberdeen, Scotland and is part of FirstGroup. It was renamed First Aberdeen Ltd in 1998, having previously operated buses in Aberdeen as Aberdeen Corporation, Grampian Regional Transport and First Grampian.

History

Aberdeen Corporation

Aberdeen Corporation Tramways was formed in 1898. The company became Aberdeen Corporation Transport Department when it became solely a bus operator as trams ceased on May 3, 1958.

Grampian Regional Transport

See also: GRT Group

Under local government reorganisation in 1975, the Aberdeen Corporation bus operations transferred to Grampian Regional Transport, a department of the Grampian Regional authority.

As part of the bus deregulation process in the UK, GRT was incorporated as Grampian Regional Transport Ltd in 1986, owned and operated by the council as an arms length company.

On 20 January 1989 the company was privatised, bought by its employees under an Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP).[1] At the time GRT comprised a fleet of 200 buses and 500 employees.[2]

Unlike future similar sales in the UK, the sale of GRT was done voluntarily by the council which had no overall majority party and had no deep rooted objection to the sale. At the time, councils could negotiate privately with single buyers, rather than the later practice of competitive bidding. It was a sale of a going concern, rather than as seen in other areas in later years, a distress sale, or a forced sale for political reasons.[3]

First Grampian

While the company continued to operate as GRT in Aberdeen, its holding company GRT Group went on to acquire other bus companies, eventually becoming FirstBus plc in 1995. At the same time, GRT adopted the First Grampian branded subsidiary of FirstBus, while legally remaining GRT ltd. In a further re-organisation of FirstBus into FirstGroup, First Grampian became First Aberdeen Ltd in 1998.

Liveries

A First Grampian bus in Aberdeen (1998) in the Gold Standard livery

Aberdeen Corporation employed a dark green and white livery,[4] later becoming pea-green and cream[5][6]

Council owned GRT changed this livery, by removing the upper green band, replacing it with a thinner orange band, and 'Grampian' fleetnames and a council crest.[7][8] On being sold to its employees, GRT used a scheme of a larger area of cream base colour, supplemented by a two-tone green stripe pattern. The fleet name was still 'Grampian', but with a thistle emblem over the 'i'.[9]

The cream base and stripe layout would go on to become a corporate livery for the GRT Group, albeit with different colours for the stripes. The First Grampian livery consisted of the GRT livery, with the fleetname changed to the FirstBus corporate style with the stylised f symbol. Some new buses were introduced with a modified Gold Standard version of the green livery.

First Grampian livery persisted until 1998. On renaming to First Aberdeen, corporate First white and pink livery was introduced, but it took a number of years before it was used on all buses.

As of June 2012 first Aberdeen have began re-painting their buses with a new lilac and white livery.

Fleet

A First Aberdeen Wright Eclipse Fusion, SV05 DXM, running on the Garthdee, Red Line, Service 1 route, seen at Union Street

A mainstay of the GRT fleet in the 1970s up to 1983 was the Leyland Atlantean double-decker bus with Alexander AL Type bodywork, supplemented by the Leyland National single-decker bus. In 1985 it moved to the Leyland Olympian double-decker with Alexander RH Type bodywork until 1988. From 1991 to 1997 the company steadily bought the Mercedes-Benz O405 single-decker.

GRT was one of the first UK users of articulated buses, trialing a Mercedes Benz. As of 2008, Aberdeen was one of the major locations for articulated buses in the United Kingdom.

In 2008 the fleet received a batch of 12 Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B9TLs.

As of 2008, all of the First Aberdeen fleet mainly consisted of low-floor buses.

Services

A First Aberdeen Volvo B10BLE, Alexander ALX300, W582 RFS, running on the Park & Ride service, on Service 40, going to Kingswells, seen at King Street

A Metro network was introduced on 13 May 2001 as a series of colour-coded high-frequency routes with the promise of no reduction in services in the following three years. In September 2004, a small number of services were withdrawn and minor revisions were made to some existing services.

A First Aberdeen Volvo B7RLE, Wright Eclipse, SV07 EHF, seen at Guild Street, Aberdeen on route 3, going to Mastrick, Purple Line.

Metro was later renamed the Overground network in line with other First companies. This was a group wide initiative to rationalise route networks into high frequency colour coded networks running on main routes, to reduce the amount of confusing overlaps and divergences of routes on minor roads.

In April 2008 there was a big change in the services affecting most of the services.

In September 2012 are introducing a ' Network Review' with a new network across the city on mainly reduced frequencies.

As of 2011 services 1 & 2 have different timetables for summer and winter.

Overground

No. Type From To Daytime Frequency (Monday to Friday) Notes
1 Red Line Danestone Garthdee Every 15 minutes
2 Red Line Ashwood Auchinyell Every 15 minutes
3 Purple Line Mastrick Cove Every 12 Minutes
3A Purple Line Mastrick Charleston every 30 minutes Sunday Only
5 Lime Green Line Dubford Balnagask Circle Every 30 Minutes
5A Lime Green Line Dubford Balnagask Circle Every 30 minutes Evening & Sunday Only
6 Hillhead Of Seaton ARI Every 20 Minutes Monday to Friday daytime only
12 Green Line Heathryfold Torry Every 12 Minutes
13 Pink Line Scatterburn Dubford Every 30 Minutes Monday to Saturday daytime only
13A Pink Line Scatterburn Golf Links N/A Evenings and Sundays only
14 Salmon Line Kingswells Golf Links Every 30 Minutes Monday to Saturday daytime only
15 Salmon Line Woodend Beach Retail Park Every 30 Minutes
16 Orange Line Northfield Craigiebuckler Every 30 Minutes
16A Orange Line Northfield Airyhall Every 30 Minutes
17 Blue Line Faulds Gate Newhills Every 15 Minutes
17A Blue Line Faulds Gate Dyce every 30 minutes Monday to Saturday Evening Only
19 Turquoise Line Tillydrone Culter Every 15 Minutes
20 Indigo Line Hillhead of Seaton Union Terrace Gardens Every 20 Minutes
21 Claret Line Charleston/Altens Dyce Every 30 minutes Monday to Saturday Only Services 21 & 21A have a combined frequency of every 15 minutes
21A Claret Line Charleston/Altens Dyce Every 30 Minutes Monday to Saturday Only Services 21 & 21A have a combined frequency of every 15 minutes
23 Yellow Line Sheddocksley Heathryfold Every 12 Minutes
25 City Centre Mastrick Every 60 Minutes Monday to Saturday Only
27 City Centre Airport Various Times Monday to Friday Only
40 Park & Ride Kingswells P&R Bridge of Don P&R Every 15 Minutes Monday to Saturday Daytime Only Every 20 Minutes on a Saturday

Late Night Services

Saturday & Sunday Mornings Only.

Going Away From City Centre

No. Type From To Notes
1 Red Line Castle Street Auchinyell
2 Red Line Union Street Ashwood
3A Purple Line Union Street Charleston
12 Green Line Union Street Heathryfold
17 Blue Line Union Street Dyce
19 Turquoise Line Union Street Culter
19 Turquoise Line Union Street Tillydrone
20 Indigo Line Union Street Hillhead of Seaton University Term Time Only
23 Yellow Line Union Street Sheddocksley

Towards City Centre

No. Type From To Notes
1 Red Line Auchinyell Castle Street
2 Red Line Ashwood Union Street
3A Purple Line Charleston Union Street
12 Green Line Heathryfold Union Street
17 Blue Line Dyce Union Street
19 Turquoise Line Culter Union Street
19 Turquoise Line Tillydrone Union Street
20 Indigo Line Hillhead of Seaton Union Street University Term Time Only
23 Yellow Line Sheddocksley Union Street

Revenue

The majority of services are operated commercially, with some services partially subsidised through Aberdeen City Council. The company operates an exact fare policy, whereby no change is given by the driver.

Competitors

As the incumbent city bus operator since the tram era, First Aberdeen has retained control of almost all of the bus services in Aberdeen over the years. Stagecoach is the only other major bus operator but only through its Stagecoach East Scotland (Bluebird Buses Ltd) operating along major trunk routes and a single city centre service. This has been the source of many complaints over the years, with many councillors and members of the public suggesting that the lack of competition in Aberdeen has led to fare prices in the city becoming unreasonably high.[citation needed]

King Street Headquarters

The company has occupied a historic depot site at 395 King Street at the heart of the city since 1914. It was built in 1862 and bought by Aberdeen Corporation Tramways[10] The site also served as global headquarters of FirstGroup since its creation. On 21 June 2007 First gained permission to redevelop the site into a new Aberdeen bus depot and global FirstGroup headquarters building. It was officially opened by Anne, Princess Royal on 15 July 2010.[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ FirstGroup official site company history page, accessed 10 September 2008
  2. ^ Interview with Moir Lockhead by www.railwaypeople.com, 11 April 2006
  3. ^ Buses Magazine, Issue 648, March 2009, Ian Allen Publishing
  4. ^ Image of a preserved Aberdeen Corporation dark green liveried bus
  5. ^ Image of a preserved Aberdeen Corporation pea-green liveried bus
  6. ^ Image of Aberdeen Corporation pea-green liveried buses, 1976
  7. ^ Images of a Grampian Region liveried buses, 1980
  8. ^ Image of a preserved Grampian Region liveried bus
  9. ^ Image of buses in the GRT Group Grampian corporate livery, 1986
  10. ^ www.firstgroup.com The History of 395 King Street 1862 – 2007
  11. ^ The Princess Royal opens FirstGroup's new Aberdeen base, accessed 29 April 2011
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