Travel Express
 H128MOB in Wolverhampton on route 1 to Tettenhall Wood, this bus was withdrawn when or during the company going under fire in 2015 | |
| Headquarters | Blakenhall, Wolverhampton |
|---|---|
| Service area | Wolverhampton / West Midlands |
| Service type | Bus services |
| Routes | 5 |
| Fleet | 16 [1] |
Travel Express is a bus company based in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England.[2]
History
Travel Express was founded in 2000 by Kishan Singh Chumber,[3] with the companies incorporation date being 25 September 2001.[2]
Initially, Travel Express ran services in Birmingham before switching operations to Wolverhampton.[4][5]
The company came under fire in January 2015 following a public enquiry by Traffic Commissioner Nick Jones, with the investigation finding that buses were unsafe and dirty, basic safety principles were unmet and that the company employed no cleaner, whilst branding manager Kishan Chumber 'incompetent'.[4][6]Chumber responded, stating that the results of the public enquiry were a "gross vilification of the business" and that Travel Express were being unfairly targeted.[3] The company had its number of allowed buses reduced from 13 to 8,[4] and its routes reduced from 4 to 2.[7] In September 2015, the company's licence was revoked for failing to comply with requirements imposed by the Traffic Commissioner.[8][7][9]
In 2016, Travel Express, now trading as ‘Let’s Go’ received a new licence to operate 8 vehicles, under three conditions: (1) the company employ a full-time transport manager, (2) employ a full-time mechanic, and that the owner have no role in vehicle maintenance.[7]
In 2018, Travel Express' owner, Kishan Singh Chumber, applied to be re-instated as a Transport Manager for the company. At the January 2018 Traffic Commission meeting, he withdrew his application.[10]
In late October 2018, Travel Express won their first TfWM tendered route, the 303 from Bilston to County Bridge that was previously operated by Diamond. The company purchased a former London General Wright Streetlite WF for this, however this has since been sold and the route is operated by either an East Lancs Esteem, or E200. [11]
In 2019, 17 E200s were purchased to replace the elderly Dennis Darts in order to comply with the Euro 6 restrictions in Wolverhampton from January 2021.
See also
References
- ^ http://www.wmbusphotos.com/TravelExpress/fleetlist.html
- ^ a b "Travel Express Limited". www.duedil.com. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
- ^ a b "Under-fire Wolverhampton bus firm boss: We've been made out as villains". Express & Star. 24 January 2015. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
- ^ a b c Lockley, Mike (21 January 2015). "Wolverhampton bus company fined over 'amateurish' service". BirmhinghamLive. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
- ^ "Stafford barred from bus". www.ourdogs.co.uk. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
- ^ Amateurish firm ran unsafe buses in Wolverhampton Express & Star 22 January 2015
- ^ a b c Jewell, Mike (23 March 2016). "Travel Express wins new licence". route-one.net. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
- ^ Routeone Team (23 September 2015). "Licence lost after grace period expires". route-one.net. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
- ^ Routeone Team (26 August 2015). "Travel Express loses appeal". route-one.net. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
- ^ Jewell, Mike (10 January 2018). "Restoration of repute as TM withdrawn". route-one.net. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
- ^ https://www.networkwestmidlands.com/media/2554/bus-service-changes-031018.pdf
