Highland Scottish
Encyclopedia
Highland Scottish Omnibuses Ltd was formed as a bus operating subsidiary of the Scottish Transport Group in June 1985 from Highland Omnibuses Ltd, and operated until October 1995 when the company was split into two - Highland Bus & Coach and Highland Country Buses. The companies have since remerged and operate today as Highland Country Buses.
, Highland Scottish operated over the massive geographical, but sparsely populated, area of the Highland
region of north west Scotland
.
Highland Scottish was the largest operator in north west Scotland and was responsible for urban, rural and interurban services in and around the towns of Inverness, Aviemore
, Nairn
, Tain
, Portree
, Wick, Thurso
and Fort William, with depots located in these towns. Services extended to Oban
in the south, and Highland also operated coaches on long distance Scottish Citylink
work, linking Inverness and the north west to Glasgow
, Edinburgh
, Aberdeen
and points in England
.
Highland Scottish only operated services on the mainland. Services in the Inner
and Outer Hebrides
, Orkney and Shetland were operated by local independent operators.
On May 16, 2008 it was finally announced that the long anticipated purchase of Highland Country Buses (and Orkney Coaches Ltd) by Stagecoach Group had been finalised.
and privatisation, the company was renamed Highland Scottish Omnibuses Ltd. Unlike many of the original SBG subsidiaries, Highland's operating area remained largely unchanged. No additional territory was gained, but Oban
was transferred to Midland Scottish
. The red
and grey livery
used by Highland Omnibuses was retained for the fleet
.
Initially, upon deregulation, Highland continued to enjoy the monopoly
position across much of its operating area. Competition started around Fort William with the arrival of a new start-up company, Gaelic Bus. However, it was the competition in the biggest town in the Highland Scottish network that was to prove controversial.
Highland Scottish was the sole operator in Inverness and provided all bus services in and around the town. However, in May 1988, a group of ex-Highland drivers formed Inverness Traction Ltd, operating a fleet of leased minibuses and operating in parallel to Highland's Inverness network. Highland's response to the competition was fast and ferocious, cutting fare levels well below the competition and increasing traffic levels by 60%. Competition between the two operators was fierce and there was much ill will, with each operator accusing the other of unfair behaviour. Both companies suffered acute financial losses during the competition period, which ended when Inverness Traction went into receivership
in April 1989.
The services operated by Inverness Traction, and the minibus leases, were immediately taken up by an Aberdeen-based coach operator, Alexanders (North East) Ltd. However, the intense competition continued and Alexanders also fell into receivership in November 1989. After a brief interval, the assets and services of Inverness Traction were purchased by the Stagecoach Group
.
Highland, perhaps aware it could not sustain competition against a national operator with a reputation for swift and successful competition, scaled down the level of service against the new operator. Soon after, Stagecoach would purchase the Inverness and Tain operations of Highland Scottish and become the dominant operator of Inverness area services.
In August 1991, Highland Scottish was sold to a consortium made up of Rapson's Coaches, a coach operator based near Inverness, and recently privatised Scottish Citylink, for £
800k. In March 1993, ownership of Highland Scottish passed wholly to Rapson's and a more modern deep red and cream
livery, with a dark red wedge and yellow
coachlines, was introduced for the fleet The golden eagle
emblem, once used by Highland Omnibuses, was reintroduced in a larger size toward the rear of the vehicle and the company traded simply as Highland. However, in October 1995, the company was split in two, with Rapson's retaining the eastern services under Highland Bus & Coach Ltd, with the remainder passed to a new company, Highland Country Buses Ltd. Highland Scottish Omnibuses at that time ceased to exist as a whole concern.
Highland Scottish remains as the trading name of Inverness bus station
.
On May 16, 2008, it was finally announced that the long anticipated purchase of Highland Country Buses (and Orkney Coaches Ltd) by Stagecoach Group had been finalised.
livery, with a large St Andrew's Cross
in the centre of its 'Highland Country' logo
. In January 1996 Highland Country Buses was bought by National Express
for £1.8m. Highland Bus & Coach, being the smaller of the two operators, continued to operate with the image its predecessor adopted. The two companies continued to exist under separate ownership until August 1998 when Rapson's bought Highland Country Buses back from National Express for £4m - £2.2m more than Rapson's originally sold the company for. Highland Country Buses is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Rapson's Coaches, and covers the operating area that Highland Scottish had on privatisation. The company has adopted a 'corporate look', sharing the two-tone blue with silver
trim livery that Rapson's Coaches used, with the addition of the large golden eagle logo at the rear of the vehicle. While regular bus services trade as Highland Country, longer distance, express and private contract work operate under the Rapson's name. In March 2005, Rapson's completed its take over of the Orkney Islands
bus market with the acquisition of four separate bus companies on the islands, including the largest, James D. Peace. The Orcadian operation trades as Orkney Coaches and remains a separate subsidiary to Highland.
All operations are now part of the Stagecoach Group.
Background
From its head office in Seafield Road, InvernessInverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
, Highland Scottish operated over the massive geographical, but sparsely populated, area of the Highland
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
region of north west Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
Highland Scottish was the largest operator in north west Scotland and was responsible for urban, rural and interurban services in and around the towns of Inverness, Aviemore
Aviemore
Aviemore is a town and tourist resort, situated within the Cairngorms National Park in the Highlands of Scotland. It is in the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area, within the Highland council area. The town is popular for skiing and other winter sports, and for hill-walking in the Cairngorm...
, Nairn
Nairn
Nairn is a town and former burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is an ancient fishing port and market town around east of Inverness...
, Tain
Tain
Tain is a royal burgh and post town in the committee area of Ross and Cromarty, in the Highland area of Scotland.-Etymology:...
, Portree
Portree
Portree is the largest town on Skye in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. It is the location for the only secondary school on the Island, Portree High school. Public transport services are limited to buses....
, Wick, Thurso
Thurso
-Facilities:Offices of the Highland Council are located in the town, as is the main campus of North Highland College, formerly Thurso College. This is one of several partner colleges which constitute the UHI Millennium Institute, and offers several certificate, diploma and degree courses from...
and Fort William, with depots located in these towns. Services extended to Oban
Oban
Oban Oban Oban ( is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. It has a total resident population of 8,120. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William and during the tourist season the town can be crowded by up to 25,000 people. Oban...
in the south, and Highland also operated coaches on long distance Scottish Citylink
Scottish Citylink
Scottish Citylink Coaches Ltd is a long distance express coach operator in Scotland and the Republic of Ireland . The company was formed as a subsidiary of Scottish Transport Group in June 1985...
work, linking Inverness and the north west to Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
and points in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Highland Scottish only operated services on the mainland. Services in the Inner
Inner Hebrides
The Inner Hebrides is an archipelago off the west coast of Scotland, to the south east of the Outer Hebrides. Together these two island chains form the Hebrides, which enjoy a mild oceanic climate. There are 36 inhabited islands and a further 43 uninhabited Inner Hebrides with an area greater than...
and Outer Hebrides
Outer Hebrides
The Outer Hebrides also known as the Western Isles and the Long Island, is an island chain off the west coast of Scotland. The islands are geographically contiguous with Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland...
, Orkney and Shetland were operated by local independent operators.
On May 16, 2008 it was finally announced that the long anticipated purchase of Highland Country Buses (and Orkney Coaches Ltd) by Stagecoach Group had been finalised.
History
Highland Scottish can be traced back to 1952 when Highland Omnibuses was created when Highland Transport, Macrae & Dick and Alexanders Town Services in Inverness were joined together. In the reorganisation of the Scottish Bus Group, in 1985, to prepare for deregulationDeregulation
Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or...
and privatisation, the company was renamed Highland Scottish Omnibuses Ltd. Unlike many of the original SBG subsidiaries, Highland's operating area remained largely unchanged. No additional territory was gained, but Oban
Oban
Oban Oban Oban ( is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. It has a total resident population of 8,120. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William and during the tourist season the town can be crowded by up to 25,000 people. Oban...
was transferred to Midland Scottish
Midland Scottish
Midland Scottish Omnibuses Ltd, in Scotland, was a bus operating subsidiary of the Scottish Transport Group formed in June 1985 from Walter Alexander and Sons Ltd, and operated until 1991 when it became Midland Bluebird Ltd.- Operation :...
. The red
Red
Red is any of a number of similar colors evoked by light consisting predominantly of the longest wavelengths of light discernible by the human eye, in the wavelength range of roughly 630–740 nm. Longer wavelengths than this are called infrared , and cannot be seen by the naked eye...
and grey livery
Livery
A livery is a uniform, insignia or symbol adorning, in a non-military context, a person, an object or a vehicle that denotes a relationship between the wearer of the livery and an individual or corporate body. Often, elements of the heraldry relating to the individual or corporate body feature in...
used by Highland Omnibuses was retained for the fleet
Fleet vehicles
Fleet vehicles are groups of motor vehicles owned or leased by a business or government agency, rather than by an individual or family. Typical examples are vehicles operated by car rental companies, taxicab companies, public utilities, public bus companies, and police departments...
.
Initially, upon deregulation, Highland continued to enjoy the monopoly
Monopoly
A monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
position across much of its operating area. Competition started around Fort William with the arrival of a new start-up company, Gaelic Bus. However, it was the competition in the biggest town in the Highland Scottish network that was to prove controversial.
Highland Scottish was the sole operator in Inverness and provided all bus services in and around the town. However, in May 1988, a group of ex-Highland drivers formed Inverness Traction Ltd, operating a fleet of leased minibuses and operating in parallel to Highland's Inverness network. Highland's response to the competition was fast and ferocious, cutting fare levels well below the competition and increasing traffic levels by 60%. Competition between the two operators was fierce and there was much ill will, with each operator accusing the other of unfair behaviour. Both companies suffered acute financial losses during the competition period, which ended when Inverness Traction went into receivership
Receivership
In law, receivership is the situation in which an institution or enterprise is being held by a receiver, a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights." The receivership remedy is an equitable remedy that emerged in...
in April 1989.
The services operated by Inverness Traction, and the minibus leases, were immediately taken up by an Aberdeen-based coach operator, Alexanders (North East) Ltd. However, the intense competition continued and Alexanders also fell into receivership in November 1989. After a brief interval, the assets and services of Inverness Traction were purchased by the Stagecoach Group
Stagecoach Group
Stagecoach Group plc is an international transport group operating buses, trains, trams, express coaches and ferries. The group was founded in 1980 by the current chairman, Sir Brian Souter, his sister, Ann Gloag, and her former husband Robin...
.
Highland, perhaps aware it could not sustain competition against a national operator with a reputation for swift and successful competition, scaled down the level of service against the new operator. Soon after, Stagecoach would purchase the Inverness and Tain operations of Highland Scottish and become the dominant operator of Inverness area services.
In August 1991, Highland Scottish was sold to a consortium made up of Rapson's Coaches, a coach operator based near Inverness, and recently privatised Scottish Citylink, for £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
800k. In March 1993, ownership of Highland Scottish passed wholly to Rapson's and a more modern deep red and cream
Cream (colour)
Cream is the colour of the cream produced by cattle grazing on natural pasture with plants rich in yellow carotenoid pigments, some of which are incorporated into the cream, to give a yellow tone to white. Cream is the pastel colour of yellow, much like as pink is to red. Cream is used as a skin...
livery, with a dark red wedge and yellow
Yellow
Yellow is the color evoked by light that stimulates both the L and M cone cells of the retina about equally, with no significant stimulation of the S cone cells. Light with a wavelength of 570–590 nm is yellow, as is light with a suitable mixture of red and green...
coachlines, was introduced for the fleet The golden eagle
Golden Eagle
The Golden Eagle is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Once widespread across the Holarctic, it has disappeared from many of the more heavily populated areas...
emblem, once used by Highland Omnibuses, was reintroduced in a larger size toward the rear of the vehicle and the company traded simply as Highland. However, in October 1995, the company was split in two, with Rapson's retaining the eastern services under Highland Bus & Coach Ltd, with the remainder passed to a new company, Highland Country Buses Ltd. Highland Scottish Omnibuses at that time ceased to exist as a whole concern.
Highland Scottish remains as the trading name of Inverness bus station
Inverness bus station
Inverness bus station serves and is in the city of Inverness, Scotland. The bus station is managed by the Highland Council.The bus station is situated at Farraline Park and can be accessed from Academy Street and Margaret Street. It is a short walk away from the Inverness railway station and the...
.
On May 16, 2008, it was finally announced that the long anticipated purchase of Highland Country Buses (and Orkney Coaches Ltd) by Stagecoach Group had been finalised.
Successor companies
Highland Country buses adopted a starkly different livery to the traditional red by going for a two-tone blueBlue
Blue is a colour, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 440–490 nm. It is considered one of the additive primary colours. On the HSV Colour Wheel, the complement of blue is yellow; that is, a colour corresponding to an equal...
livery, with a large St Andrew's Cross
Flag of Scotland
The Flag of Scotland, , also known as Saint Andrew's Cross or the Saltire, is the national flag of Scotland. As the national flag it is the Saltire, rather than the Royal Standard of Scotland, which is the correct flag for all individuals and corporate bodies to fly in order to demonstrate both...
in the centre of its 'Highland Country' logo
Logo
A logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by commercial enterprises, organizations and even individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition...
. In January 1996 Highland Country Buses was bought by National Express
National Express
National Express Coaches, more commonly known as National Express, is a brand and company, owned by the National Express Group, under which the majority of long distance bus and coach services in Great Britain are operated,...
for £1.8m. Highland Bus & Coach, being the smaller of the two operators, continued to operate with the image its predecessor adopted. The two companies continued to exist under separate ownership until August 1998 when Rapson's bought Highland Country Buses back from National Express for £4m - £2.2m more than Rapson's originally sold the company for. Highland Country Buses is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Rapson's Coaches, and covers the operating area that Highland Scottish had on privatisation. The company has adopted a 'corporate look', sharing the two-tone blue with silver
Silver (color)
Silver is the metallic shade resembling gray, closest to that of polished silver.The visual sensation usually associated with the metal silver is its metallic shine. This cannot be reproduced by a simple solid color, because the shiny effect is due to the material's brightness varying with the...
trim livery that Rapson's Coaches used, with the addition of the large golden eagle logo at the rear of the vehicle. While regular bus services trade as Highland Country, longer distance, express and private contract work operate under the Rapson's name. In March 2005, Rapson's completed its take over of the Orkney Islands
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...
bus market with the acquisition of four separate bus companies on the islands, including the largest, James D. Peace. The Orcadian operation trades as Orkney Coaches and remains a separate subsidiary to Highland.
All operations are now part of the Stagecoach Group.