London Country South East
Kentish Bus

An AEC Routemaster in Kentish Bus maroon and cream livery.
Founded	1986 (publicly owned company); 1988 (privatised)
Defunct	1997
Headquarters	Northfleet
Service area	Kent Greater London
Service type	Buses

London Country South East was a bus operator in South-East England. It was formed in 1986 from the break-up of London Country Bus Services, and was known as Kentish Bus for most of its existence. Its operations are now part of Arriva Southern Counties.

Creation and early history [edit]

In the run-up to deregulation, London Country Bus Services was broken up into four smaller companies in September 1986. London Country South East was the smallest of the four, with just 169 buses and garages at Dartford, Northfleet, Swanley and Dunton Green, with some London Transport contracts operated from the former National Travel garages at Victoria and Catford, with Head Office in an office block in Dartford.

Bill Gunning, the former Traffic Manager of London Country, became the new company's Managing Director. The company was renamed Kentish Bus & Coach in April 1987, and a new maroon and cream livery, designed by Best Impressions and loosely based on the colours of the erstwhile Colchester Corporation Transport, replaced the former London Country green.^[1] Head office was removed to Apex House, an offoce block in Northfleet.

1988-1994: Proudmutual Ownership [edit]

As part of the privatisation of National Bus Company, Kentish Bus was sold by the government in March 1988.^[2] Proudmutual, a holding company formed by the management buyout of Northumbria Motor Services on that company's privatisation, bought Kentish Bus for £2.4 million.^[3] Bill Gunning, Managing Director, left at privatisation; Brian Hirst had previously worked for Alder Valley.^[1] and joined Kentish Bus as General Manager in 1989.

The company then expanded its London operations significantly with a series of contract wins and acquisitions. The largest win was of London Buses routes 22A/B and 55 in East London, won from London Forest in January 1990; 43 new Leyland Olympians with dual-door Northern Counties bodies were bought to operate the routes, from a BRS depot at Hackney Marshes. The former London Forest garage at Ash Grove later replaced the Hackney Marshes site.

The competitive Mini Metro operations of Metrobus Ltd in the Gravesend area was taken over at the beginning of 1990.

In February 1992 the company paid £300,000 for the seven London Transport contracted routes and 50 vehicles of Maidstone Borough Transport t/a Boro'line Maidstone. These were initially operated from the former Boro'line garage at Thames Road, Crayford and were later transferred to operate from Dartford.

In 1993, Kentish Bus gained work in S E London and ordered 65 new buses to cover the workings; this took the fleet size to 352, more than double its size in 1986.^[1]

From April 1993, London Buses route 19 was gained on competitive tender, for which the company was leased refurbished RML Routemasters from London Regional Transport; they were the first operator other than a former London Buses subsidiary to win a contract for a Routemaster-operated route, and used their own maroon and cream livery in place of London red.

By August 1993 they had become the largest independent operator of London contracts; further expansion came in November 1993, when two London contracts and six minor commercial routes, along with 23 buses, were taken over from Transcity Buses.^[1][4]

1994-1997: British Bus and Cowie [edit]

An early Dennis Dart in the short-lived green and yellow livery on route 306 in Gravesend.

In July 1994, the fast-expanding British Bus group bought Proudmutual. British Bus already owned neighbouring operator London & Country (successor to London Country South West), and in January 1995 London & Country's contracted operations at Croydon, Walworth and Dunton Green depots were split into a new company, Londonlinks, which was run from Kentish Bus' Northfleet base.^[5] When Maidstone & District were also acquired by British Bus in April 1995, the three companies were put under the control of a single holding company, Invictaway, which was based at M&D's head office in Maidstone.^[5] A new livery of green and yellow was also introduced to Kentish Bus.^[5] On August 1, 1996, the company had another new owner: Cowie Group bought out British Bus in a deal which brought three of the four segments of London Country back into common ownership.^[2]

Rebranding and subsequent history [edit]

In 1997 Cowie was rebranded as Arriva. The Invictaway company became Arriva Southern Counties, which was subdivided into five smaller subsidiaries. The Dartford and Northfleet garages of Kentish Bus formed the new Arriva Kent Thameside operation, while Tunbridge Wells joined most of Maidstone & District's operation as Arriva Kent & Sussex.

The London operation was closed in either Battersea base or Leyton base, and were spread into respective depots, be it as 19 or 22A/22B. The 22A/22B were renumbered 242.

References [edit]

v t e Bus companies operating in South East England Berkshire Arriva Shires & Essex Courtney Buses First Berkshire & The Thames Valley Fleet Buzz Reading Transport Newbury Buses Reading Buses Stagecoach in Hampshire Thamesdown Transport Thames Travel Wilts & Dorset (services) Buckinghamshire Arriva Shires & Essex Carousel Buses First Berkshire & The Thames Valley First London Stagecoach East MK Metro East Sussex Arriva Southern Counties Brighton & Hove Compass Travel Cuckmere Community Bus Metrobus Renown Coaches Southdown PSV Stagecoach South East Stagecoach in Hastings Stagecoach in Eastbourne The Sussex Bus Hampshire AMK Mini Coaches Bluestar Brijan Tours Cango Damory Emsworth & District First Hampshire & Dorset Fleet Buzz Marchwood Motorways Reading Transport Newbury Buses Reading Buses Stagecoach South Stagecoach in Hampshire Stagecoach in Hants & Surrey Stagecoach in Portsmouth Stagecoach in the South Downs Uni-link Velvet Wilts & Dorset (services) Xelabus Hertfordshire Arriva Shires & Essex Arriva London Centrebus Excel Passenger Logistics Metroline S.M. Coaches Stagecoach East Sullivan Buses Woottens Luxury Travel Uno Isle of Wight Southern Vectis Island Breezers Kent Arriva Southern Counties Countryliner Kent Top Travel The Kings Ferry Metrobus Nu-Venture Stagecoach South East Sullivan Buses Oxfordshire Arriva Shires & Essex Oxford Bus Company Reading Transport Newbury Buses Reading Buses Stagecoach Oxfordshire Thamesdown Transport Thames Travel Surrey Abellio Surrey Arriva Guildford & West Surrey Arriva London Atbus Compass Travel Countywide Travel Epsom Coaches (Quality Line) First Berkshire & The Thames Valley Fleet Buzz London General Metrobus Metroline Safeguard Coaches Southdown PSV Stagecoach South Stagecoach in Hampshire Stagecoach in Hants & Surrey Sullivan Buses Sunray Travel Transdev London West Sussex Arriva Southern Counties Arriva Guildford & West Surrey New Enterprise Coaches Big Lemon Brighton & Hove Compass Travel Emsworth & District Flights Hallmark Minerva Accord Metrobus Southdown PSV Stagecoach South Stagecoach in Hampshire Stagecoach in Hants & Surrey The Sussex Bus National Megabus National Express

v t e Former bus companies operating in the United Kingdom National Associated Motorways Blazefield Group British Coachways British Electric Traction Fraser Eagle GRT Group National Bus Company (UK) Thomas Tilling Scotland v t e Former bus companies operating in Scotland Scottish Bus Group Central Scottish Clydeside Scottish Eastern Scottish Highland Scottish Kelvin Central Buses Kelvin Scottish Lowland Scottish Midland Scottish Northern Scottish Western Scottish Other operators Arriva Scotland West A1 Service Dart Buses First Stop Travel Gibson's of Moffat McKindless Oban and District Scottish Motor Traction Strathclyde Buses Western SMT Wales v t e Former bus companies operating in Wales Companies Crosville Motor Services Islwyn Borough Transport National Welsh Omnibus Services Red & White Services Rhondda Transport Company Silver Star Holidays South Wales Transport Western Welsh England v t e Former bus companies operating in England North West England Birkenhead Buses Blackburn Transport Blue Bus and Coach Services Bluebird Bus and Coach Bu-Val Buses Citibus Tours Crosville Motor Services First Chester & The Wirral Glenvale Transport GM Buses GM Buses (2005) Lancashire United Transport Maynes Bus Maytree Travel MTL North Western Road Car Company (1923) North Western Road Car Company (1986) Northern Blue Pennine Blue Red & White Services Ribble Motor Services Speedwellbus Yelloway Motor Services North East England Black Prince Buses Busways Travel Services Godfrey Burley Group Jolly Bus Leon Motors Mexborough and Swinton Traction Company North Eastern Bus Services Northern General Transport Company OK Motor Services Samuel Ledgard South Yorkshire Transport United Automobile Services Venture Transport West Riding Automobile Company West Yorkshire Road Car Yorkshire Rider Yorkshire Traction Yorkshire Terrier Midlands A2Z Travel Barton Transport Birmingham City Transport Birmingham Motor Traction Chase Coaches Glossopdale Bus Company Go West Midlands Lionspeed Mid Warwickshire Motors Limited North Birmingham Busways People's Express Probus Management South Notts Bus Company Travel Merry Hill Travel Your Bus Wesley Coaches Zak's Buses Eastern England Eastern National Omnibus Company MK Metro South West England Badgerline Bristol Omnibus Company Devon General Greyhound Motors Great Western Railway Hants & Dorset Motor Services Shamrock Buses South Gloucestershire Bus & Coach Southern National Sureline Western National South East England Alder Valley Aldershot & District Traction Badger Vectis Boro'line Maidstone Bygone Buses Cavendish Motor Services Centra City Clipper East Kent Road Car Company Invictaway Maidstone & District Maidstone Corporation Transport Moss Motor Tours Portsmouth Corporation Transport Shamrock Buses Southampton Citybus Southdown Motor Services Thames Transit Thames Valley Traction Tillingbourne Bus Company Yellow Bus Services Greater London Birch Brothers Boro'line (London) Capital Citybus Capital Logistics Connex bus East Thames Buses Grey-Green Harris Bus London Country Bus Services London Country North East London Country North West London Country South East London Country South West London Easylink London Electrobus Company London Forest London Pride Sightseeing London Traveller MTL NSL Buses