FirstGroup

FirstGroup plc
Company typePublic
ISINGB0003452173 
IndustryTransport
Founded1 April 1995
HeadquartersAberdeen, Scotland, UK
Area served
United Kingdom
Republic of Ireland
Key people
Peter Lynas
(Acting Chairman)
Graham Sutherland
(Chief Executive)
ProductsBus, coach, rail & tram
Revenue £4,715.1 million (2024)[1]
£46.5 million (2024)[1]
£(9.4) million (2024)[1]
Number of employees
29,339 (2024)[1]
SubsidiariesSee below
Websitewww.firstgroupplc.com

FirstGroup is a transport organisation that operates both buses and rail across the United Kingdom. They are based in Aberdeen, Scotland.[2]

Major rail operations from past and present include First Great Western, First Capital Connect among others

Current operating businesses

Current operating businesses include:[3]

First Bus

In September 2022 First Bus was reorganised as follows:[4][5]

United Kingdom

Scotland
  • First Aberdeen (formerly First Grampian)
  • King Coaches (formerly First Aberdeen Coach Hire and Grampian Executive)
  • First Glasgow (formerly First Kelvin and First Greater Glasgow)
East of England
  • First Eastern Counties
  • First Essex (formerly First Eastern National, First Thamesway)
Manchester, Midlands and South Yorkshire
  • First South Yorkshire & Midlands
  • First Leicester (Leicester Electric) (Formerly Leicester city bus, Leicester corporation transport)
  • Aircoach(Leicester to Birmingham Airport)
  • East Midlands Airport Carpark shuttles (First Leicester)
  • First Greater Manchester (Bee Network)
  • First Potteries (operating in Staffordshire and South Cheshire, formerly First PMT/PMT Limited)
North and West Yorkshire
  • First West Yorkshire
  • First Bradford
  • First Halifax, Calder Valley & Huddersfield
  • First Leeds (Leeds Electric)
  • First York (including the York Park & Ride)
South and South West England
  • First South West (formerly First Devon & Cornwall)
  • Kernow
  • Buses of Somerset
  • First Beeline (formerly First Berkshire & The Thames Valley)
  • First Hampshire & Dorset
  • Truronian
Wales and West of England
  • First West of England (formerly First Bristol & First Somerset & Avon)
  • First Worcestershire (sometimes referred to as First Wyvern)
  • First Cymru
Other operations
  • First Travel Solutions re-branded 2016 (formerly First Rail Support) which provides emergency and planned rail replacement transport to train operating companies using First and non-First Transport through its 24-hour control room in Clayton-le-moors Lancashire.
  • First Tram operations (Tramlink) Taken over by First Group in 2017 it deals with one of the two Lite rail networks in greater London.
  • Specialist Passenger Solutions
  • Ensignbus
  • York Pullman[6]
  • Lakeside Group[7]
  • Anderson Travel[8]

Ireland

  • Aircoach
  • Matthews Coach Hire[9]

First Rail

United Kingdom

Former operating companies

Bus and coach

Canada

  • Greyhound Canada (intercity bus services)
    • Grey Goose Bus Lines
    • Vancouver Island Coach Lines[11]
    • Voyageur Colonial Bus Lines
    • First Student (school, charter bus and public transit services)
    • HandyDART Contract to TransLink (British Columbia) for accessible transit service in Metro Vancouver

Germany

  • FirstGroup Rhein-Neckar sold September 2011 to Marwyn European Transport[12][13]

Hong Kong

  • New World First Bus 26% stake sold May 2000 to New World Development

United Kingdom

  • First Chester & The Wirral sold to Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire in January 2013
  • First Northampton ceased 14 September 2013
  • First Scotland East (formerly First SMT, First Borders and First Midland Bluebird) sold to McGills in September 2022
  • First London from March 1997 until September 2013, most operations sold to Go-Ahead London, Metroline and Tower Transit, remainder ceased upon expiry of contracts in September 2013
  • Greyhound UK coach services between September 2009 and December 2015
  • First Borders (formerly Lowland Scottish and part of the wider First Scotland East group) sold to West Coast Motors, trading as Borders Buses, on 26 March 2017.[14][15]
  • First Southampton (also known as First Cityred) ceased trading on 18 February 2023.[16]

United States

  • Greyhound Lines (intercity bus services)[17]
    • BoltBus (a discount operator competing with Megabus)
  • First Vehicle Services, which maintained vehicles for many corporations, organizations and local governments, including the other First divisions.
  • First Student, sold in 2021
  • First Transit, sold in 2021

Rail

United Kingdom

United States

  • A-train, Denton County Transportation Authority commenced October 2016

Denmark and Sweden

  • DSBFirst was a joint rail venture with Danish State Railways (30% shareholding) until 2013

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Annual Report and Accounts 2024" (PDF). FirstGroup. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
  2. Companies House extract company no SC157176 FirstGroup plc
  3. "At a glance". FirstGroup. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
  4. Hilson, Aaron (5 July 2022). "First Bus restructures as Government funding cuts loom in England". CBW.
  5. "A reverse move for First". busandtrainuser.com. 2 July 2022.
  6. "Agreement to acquire York Pullman Bus Company". otp.tools.investis.com. Retrieved 26 October 2024.
  7. chrispeat (25 October 2024). "Lakeside Group acquired by FirstGroup". Bus & Coach Buyer. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
  8. chrispeat (21 October 2024). "Anderson Travel acquired by First". Bus & Coach Buyer. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
  9. chrispeat (4 February 2025). "FirstGroup acquires Matthews Coach Hire". Bus & Coach Buyer. Retrieved 5 February 2025.
  10. "First acquires Stirling-London Grand Union open access operation". Rail. Retrieved 5 December 2024.
  11. "Vancouver Island Coachlines – Your Vancouver Island Transportation Solution". Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  12. "First moves in to Germany". Bus & Coach Professional. 23 May 2007. Archived from the original on 13 December 2007. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
  13. "FirstGroup zieht sich aus Deutschland zurück" [FirstGroup withdraws from Germany]. OmnibusRevue (in German). 4 October 2011. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
  14. "First sells Scottish border services to West Coast Motors". Coach & Bus Week. 14 March 2017.
  15. "Sale of First Borders to West Coast Motors". First Group. 25 March 2017.
  16. "First Bus to close Southampton business in 2023". Route One. 29 November 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  17. "Sale of Greyhound Lines, Inc". otp.tools.investis.com. Retrieved 23 October 2021.

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