Historic Dorset bus operator Yellow Buses has collapsed into administration.
Bournemouth Transport Limited, which trades as Yellow Buses, appointed Simon Rowe and Rachel Hotham of professional services firm Milsted Langdon as joint administrators on Friday (July 29).
The transport firm, which employs around 300 staff, has “suffered” from the challenges of the pandemic and the changes in people’s lifestyle habits which followed, according to the administrators.
Milsted Langdon said with more people working remotely and some “still reluctant” to travel on public transport, passenger numbers at Yellow Buses had “severely” reduced on all routes. The loss of revenue has had a financial impact on the business, which has also come under pressure from rising fuel prices and inflation.
The administrators said all staff had been paid on Friday – and it had secured sufficient funding to make sure it could make salary and “other essential” ongoing supply payments. It also confirmed it had been n in talks with union UNITE, which represents many of the employees.
“We recognise that many people rely on the Yellow Bus network for all sorts of aspects of their daily lives and that for them and the 300 staff employed by the business this is an unsettling time,” the administrators said.
“We can recognise this and want to reassure everyone that we and our team are doing all we can to ensure that the business continues to operate as normal as possible under the circumstances and continues to do so into the future.”
The directors of Yellow Buses have been looking for outside investment or a buyer to take over the business “for some time”, Milsted Langdon said. Negotiations with a large national operator have entered the final stages and Milsted Langdon said it hoped to conclude a deal within a matter of days.
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“[The directors] felt that as a small independent business it was unable to handle the current challenges alone and hoped that by merging with a larger operator it would provide them with a broader platform from which to operate. Unfortunately, those negotiations take time, and during that time the business was coming under increasing financial pressure.”
Milsted Langdon said it would keep Yellow Bus staff and customers updated over the “coming days.”
“With its long history in the local area and its integral role within the community we appreciate that there will be a great number of people concerned about this news, what we would ask is that the community shows its support by using the services,” the administrators added.
In June, Bournemouth Coastal Business Improvement District (BID) and Yellow Buses formed a partnership to slash the price of bus tickets over the Jubilee bank holiday weekend. Yellow Buses has celebrated every one of the Queen’s landmark occasions since her coronation in 1953.
