Mobico Group, formerly National Express Group, is a British multinational public transport company with headquarters in
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
, England.
Domestically it currently operates bus and coach services under brands including
National Express. The company also operates transport services including trains abroad: in the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...
, United States, Canada, Spain, Portugal, Malta, Germany, Bahrain, Morocco, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and South Korea, and long-distance coach services across Europe. It is listed on the
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange based in London, England. the total market value of all companies trading on the LSE stood at US$3.42 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Paul's Cath ...
and is a constituent of the
FTSE 250 Index.
History
Early years

In 1972, the state-owned
National Bus Company decided to bring together the scheduled coach services operated by its bus operating companies in the United Kingdom under one brand.
Sir Frederick Wood, a prominent businessman and industrialist, was asked to oversee the creation of this new business model and led the group as its chairman from 1972 to 1978. Initially branded as ''National'', the ''National Express'' brand was first used in 1974.
[National Express Group: Our History](_blank)
National Express
With the privatisation of the National Bus Company in the 1980s, National Express was subject to a
management buyout
A management buyout (MBO) is a form of acquisition in which a company's existing managers acquire a large part, or all, of the company, whether from a parent company or individual. Management- and/or leveraged buyouts became noted phenomena of 19 ...
in March 1988. The management team pursued various means of diversification; during 1989, the company purchased
Crosville Wales.
1990s
Starting in early 1990s, National Express' financial performance began to deteriorate; this led to a new management team taking over the company in July 1991 which had the backing of
ECI Partners, a mid-market private equity firm. The new team refocused the group on its core activities, leading to the sale of Crosville Wales to
British Bus. During October 1991, it purchased Speedlink, an operator of coach services between
Gatwick and
Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport , also colloquially known as London Heathrow Airport and named ''London Airport'' until 1966, is the primary and largest international airport serving London, the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdo ...
s.
[ In December 1992, National Express Group plc was floated on the ]London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange based in London, England. the total market value of all companies trading on the LSE stood at US$3.42 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Paul's Cath ...
.[
In 1993, Scottish Citylink, Eurolines and East Midlands Airport were acquired. During April 1995, National Express purchased West Midlands Travel, the formerly council-owned bus network of ]Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
and the West Midlands;[ it was rebranded Travel West Midlands in September 1996. This move began the brand family of ''Travel ...'' local bus operations. ]Bournemouth Airport
Bournemouth Airport (previously known as Hurn Airport and Bournemouth International Airport) is an international airport located north-northeast of Bournemouth, England. The site opened as RAF Hurn in 1941, but was transferred to civil con ...
was acquired in April 1995.
During April 1996, National Express commenced operating its first UK railway franchises, Gatwick Express and Midland Mainline. One year later, three other franchises were awarded, these being Silverlink, Central Trains and ScotRail
ScotRail Trains Limited, trading as ScotRail (), is a Scottish train operating company that is publicly owned by Scottish Rail Holdings on behalf of the Scottish Government. It has been operating the ScotRail franchise as an operator of las ...
. To comply with a Monopolies & Mergers Commission
The Competition Commission was a non-departmental public body responsible for investigating mergers, markets and other enquiries related to regulated industries under competition law in the United Kingdom. It was a competition regulator under ...
ruling on it winning the ScotRail franchise, National Express sold the Scottish Citylink operation to Metroline
Metroline is a bus operator operating primarily in Greater London and partially in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire. It is a subsidiary of ComfortDelGro and operates bus services for London Buses under contract to Transport for Lon ...
in August 1998.
In February 1997, Taybus Public Transport was acquired and rebranded Travel Dundee.
During September 1998, Crabtree-Harmon, the seventh-largest student transportation bus company in the United States was acquired, with 82 school bus contracts mainly in Missouri
Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...
, but also in other Midwest states including Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...
, Iowa
Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
, Kansas
Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...
, Oklahoma
Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...
and Utah
Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
. During February 1999, Robinson Bus Service was purchased; it was followed in August 1999 by Durham Transportation. These acquisitions placed National Express as one of the top three United States school bus operators.
In May 1999, National Express purchased Australia's largest private bus operator, National Bus Company. National Bus Company had bus operations in Brisbane
Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
, Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
and Perth
Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...
, and also held a 57% shareholding in Westbus, Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
's largest bus operator. Westbus also had a London coach operation. In August 1999, National Express was awarded the M>Train, M>Tram and V/Line Passenger rail franchises in the Australian state of Victoria.
2000s
During January 2000, National Express expanded into the American market by acquiring ATC, a public transportation operator. In July 2000, Prism Rail was purchased, though which the c2c, Wales & Borders, Wessex Trains and West Anglia Great Northern franchises were added to National Express' portfolio.
In December 2002, National Express handed in its rail franchises in Victoria, Australia, having been unable to renegotiate financial terms with the State Government
A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonom ...
.
During February 2004, the London bus operations of Connex were purchased and rebranded Travel London. In April 2004, National Express East Anglia commenced operating the Greater Anglia rail franchise. In September 2004, National Express sold its Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
bus operations to Ventura Bus Lines, and Brisbane
Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
and Perth
Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...
bus operations to Connex. After being placed in administration in January 2005, Westbus was sold to ComfortDelGro Cabcharge in August 2005.
In June 2005, the London bus arm of Tellings-Golden Miller was purchased by National Express, after which it was rebranded as Travel London. During July 2005, National Express sold ATC to Connex. In October 2005, the company agreed to buy most of the operations of privately owned Spanish transport operator ALSA, which operates bus and coach services in Spain, Portugal and Morocco, and long-distance coach services to other parts of Europe. Alsa's operations in South America and China were retained by the previous owners.
In April 2007, National Express acquired Continental Auto, the second-largest bus and coach operator in Spain.
During November 2007, South East England coach operator The Kings Ferry was purchased and an airport to hotel shuttle service in London branded Dot2Dot was launched. Dot2Dot did not prove to be commercially viable and thus ceased operations in November 2008.
In November 2007, National Express announced plans to re-brand all of their operations under a new unified National Express identity. It was intended to achieve greater recognition for all the group companies, to coincide with recent acquisitions and after current rail operations had improved in reliability to warrant association with the established express coach image. It coincided with the appointment of a group director for all UK operations and relocation of the head office from London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
to Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
, bringing all operations under a single strategic management structure. Day-to-day management remained within individual companies.
During February 2007, the Department for Transport announced that National Express, along with Arriva
Arriva Ltd. is a British multinational public transport company headquartered in Sunderland, England.
The company was originally established on 24 October 1938 as T Cowie Ltd. Initially focused on the sale of motorcycles, it relaunched shortl ...
, First, and Virgin Rail Group
Virgin Rail Group (WCT Group since 2021) is a British rail transport company that was formed by the Virgin Group to bid for rail franchises in the United Kingdom during the privatisation of British Rail in the late 1990s.
United Kingdom ope ...
, had been shortlisted to lodge bids for the InterCity East Coast franchise. In August 2007, the Department for Transport awarded the Intercity East Coast franchise to National Express, leading to the creation of National Express East Coast (NXEC) shortly thereafter. Under the terms of its franchise agreement, National Express committed to paying a £1.4-billion premium to the Department of Transport over a time span of seven years and four months. However, numerous rail analysts promptly voiced concerns that the company had paid too much for the franchise, and had effectively repeated GNER's mistake in order to secure the franchise. On 9 December 2007, National Express East Coast commenced operations, taking over from Great North Eastern Railway.
In May 2009, National Express sold Travel London and Travel Surrey to Abellio
Abellio (also Abelio and Abelionni) was a god worshiped in the Garonne Valley in Gallia Aquitania (now southwest France), known primarily by a number of inscriptions which were discovered in Comminges, in the Pyrenees. He may have been a god ...
.
Operational safety concerns
On 3 January 2007, a speeding National Express coach overturned on the M4/ M25 slip road, leaving three passengers dead. The driver was jailed for five years.
In July 2009, a junior transport minister, the Gillingham MP Paul Clark, listed a series of concerns to National Express in a letter following a meeting with an employee of National Express East Coast who lives in his constituency. The worker claimed that, due to reduced maintenance checks, some trains were in use with defective brakes, an allegation that was strongly denied by the company, which stated it would "never compromise on safety". He wrote: "As a result of reduced maintenance checks, 'some long-haul sets rainsare in use with brake defects'. Increasing cuts in staff combined with an increasing pressure to ensure that trains run safely has resulted in fears among staff that a major accident is 'just around the corner'." Passengers, he added, "have been 'poisoned' as a result of coffee machines not being cleaned correctly, with cleaning fluids left in situ". The minister said he was "shocked and appalled at the information with which I've been provided. You will understand that these allegations are exceptionally serious".
School bus drivers in the US have raised concerns about the safety of the buses run by Durham, a subsidiary of National Express, and the second-largest operator of school bus services in North America. According to representatives of Durham bus drivers, fluid leaks, tyres that need to be replaced, black mould and non-functional emergency equipment are regular concerns, whilst workers continued to operate buses while sick because they cannot afford to miss a day of work and drivers are not paid for all the time they work.
Default on East Coast rail franchise
By 2009, National Express East Coast had come under increasing financial pressure due to various factors, including compounding rises in fuel prices and the poor economic climate of the time, commonly known as the Great Recession
The Great Recession was a period of market decline in economies around the world that occurred from late 2007 to mid-2009. . In contrast to the company's projected revenue increases during its franchise, NXEC's actual operating income (generated primarily from ticket sales) had decreased by 1 percent during the first half of 2009. According to ''Rail'', the franchise had quickly garnered a reputation for cost-cutting and a decline in service levels, particularly in terms of the onboard catering. It had also introduced various new charges, such as a £2.50 per journey leg for seat reservations.
During April 2009, National Express confirmed that the company was still pursuing talks with the government over possible financial assistance with the franchise, either through a reduction in the premium due or some other form of assistance. During these negotiations, the company had reportedly offered to pay over £100 million to be released from its commitment to operate the franchise. In July 2009, the Department for Transport
The Department for Transport (DfT) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport ...
announced that it would take the National Express East Coast franchise into public ownership at the end of the year after National Express announced it would not invest any further funds into the franchise, effectively declaring it planned to default. In defaulting on the franchise, National Express directly incurred losses of £72 million by forfeiting bonds. Directly Operated Railways took over the East Coast franchise on 14 November 2009.
The franchise failure sparked public and industry calls for the permanent public ownership of the InterCity East Coast franchise, or even the complete scrapping of the entire franchise system. In November 2009, the government announced that National Express East Anglia would not be granted a three-year extension that it had otherwise qualified for; this was reportedly a result of the East Coast default. However, National Express were subsequently granted an extension until October 2011, followed by another through to February 2012.
Prospective takeover
With the company's finances under stress largely as a result of having overbid for the National Express East Coast rail franchise, National Express became a takeover target in 2009. In June 2009, a takeover offer from fellow transport operator FirstGroup was rejected. On 3 September 2009, National Express' largest shareholder, Spain's Cosmen family with 18.5%, and CVC Capital Partners made a takeover offer of £765 million for the company. The Takeover Panel set a deadline of 11 September 2009 for all prospective bids.
During September 2009, National Express agreed to allow the Cosmen/CVC consortium to undertake due diligence
Due diligence is the investigation or exercise of care that a reasonable business or person is normally expected to take before entering into an agreement or contract with another party or an act with a certain standard of care.
Due diligence ...
. During the following month, the Cosmen/CVC consortium had reportedly reached an agreement to sell the UK bus and rail operations to rival transport operator Stagecoach Group
Stagecoach Group is a transport group based in Perth, Scotland. It operates buses and express coaches in the United Kingdom.
Stagecoach was originally founded in 1976 as ''Gloagtrotter'', a recreational vehicle and minibus hire business. Dur ...
if its offer was successful. The deadline for offers was subsequently extended to 16 October 2009.
On 16 October 2009, the Cosmen/CVC consortium announced that they had withdrawn their offer. That same day, Stagecoach submitted its own all-share bid to acquire National Express. This, too, did not proceed and, in November 2009, National Express announced it would raise the necessary capital through a share issue.
2010s
During February 2013, National Express Germany was awarded two regional rail contracts by the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr
The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr (), abbreviated VRR, is a public transport association (Verkehrsverbund) in the Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It covers large parts of the Ruhr, Ruhr area, the Lower Rhine region including Düsse ...
, Zweckverband Nahverkehr Rheinland and Zweckverband Nahverkehr Westfalen-Lippe authorities that commenced in December 2015.
In January 2015, the Bayerische Eisenbahngesellschaft announced that National Express had been selected to operate the Nuremberg S-Bahn system from December 2018. It was to have been the first Deutsche Bahn
(, ; abbreviated as DB or DB AG ) is the national railway company of Germany, and a state-owned enterprise under the control of the German government. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG).
DB was fou ...
S-Bahn network to be taken over by a private operator. However, in October 2016, National Express elected to pull out, citing a delay in the ability to order new rolling stock while a challenge brought on by Deutsche Bahn was resolved, would make its bid unviable.
In June 2015, it was announced that the parts 2 and 3 of the Rhein-Ruhr-Express which will be introduced in 2018 will be operated by National Express. This includes Regional-Express
In Germany, Luxembourg and Austria, the Regional-Express (; RE, or in Austria: REX) is a type of regional train. It is similar to a semi-fast train, with a top speed of and an average speed of about as it calls at fewer stations than ''R ...
services RE4, RE5 and RE6 in Northrhine-Westphalia.
In December 2016, coach operator Clarkes of London was purchased with 56 vehicles. In March 2020, Lucketts Travel was purchased.
Takeover attempt and rebranding
During September 2021, it was reported that National Express had entered into talks to acquire Stagecoach Group. In December 2021, a deal was agreed between the boards of the two companies: however, it was subject to both shareholder approval and regulatory scrutiny. Having originally recommended shareholders accept the National Express offer, in March 2022, the Stagecoach board of directors withdrew its recommendation in favour of a takeover offer from a DWS managed investment fund.
In January 2023, the coach excursion business of seven National Express Transport Solutions companies (Coliseum Coaches, Lucketts Travel, Mortons Travel, Solent Tours, Stewarts Tours, Woods Tours and Worthing Coaches) were brought together under the 'Touromo' brand. Touromo aimed to provide day trips and short breaks to destinations across the UK and Europe as one combined brand, and National Express planned to expand the brand outside the West Midlands and South East England to operate across the United Kingdom. Six months later, however, it was announced that Touromo was to cease operations and that National Express Transport Solutions was to cease offering day trips and holiday excursions in October 2023.
In June 2023, National Express changed its name to Mobico Group.
In August 2024, Mobico announced that they had begun the process of selling its North American school bus division, including Durham School Services, in order to reduce its debt.
In April 2025, it was announced that chief executive Ignacio Garat would depart at the end of the month after nearly five years. Mobico chair Phil White, who served as CEO of National Express Group between 1997 and 2006, took over on an interim basis as the search for a successor gets underway.
Operations
National Express' operations are summarised below:[National Express Group: Our businesses](_blank)
National Express
Europe
Bus and coach
The bus and coach services operated by the group are:
=Bus
=
* AirLinks (contract bus operation at UK airports)
* National Express West Midlands (Major bus operations in Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
and the rest of the West Midlands)
** National Express Coventry (bus operation in and around Coventry
Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...
, a subsidiary of National Express West Midlands)
**West Midlands Bus on Demand (Demand Responsive Transport in the Coventry area)
=Coach
=
* National Express Coaches
National Express, also abbreviated NX, is a Intercity bus service, long and medium-distance intercity coach operator operating services throughout Great Britain. It is a subsidiary of the British multinational public transport company Mobico G ...
(long-distance express and airport coach services in the UK)
* National Express Transport Solutions
** Lucketts Travel (private coach hire)
** The Kings Ferry (private coach hire)
** Clarkes of London (private coach hire)
** Woods Coaches (private coach hire and tours)
** Worthing Coaches (private coach hire and tours)
** Coliseum Coaches (private coach hire and tours)
** Solent Coaches (private coach hire and tours)
* ALSA including Continental-Auto (coach services in Spain and Western Europe)
* Dublin Express (Dublin and Belfast services to Dublin Airport)
* In 2016, National Express coach tickets are distributed through Europe by the online booking platform SoBus.
In July 2023, National Express announced they would be ceasing the operation of coach tours having only launched the Touromo brand of coach tours in January the same year.
Railway
National Express Germany operates a number of train services in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...
.
* Wupper-Express (RE 4), from December 2020
* Rhein-Express (RE/RRX 5), from June 2019
* Westfalen-Express (RE/RRX 6), from December 2019
* Rhein-Münsterland-Express (RE 7), from December 2015
* Rhein-Wupper-Bahn (RB 48), from December 2015
Following the financial difficulties of Abellio GmbH, National Express was awarded an emergency contract to operate further services in North Rhine-Westphalia from February 2022 to run for two years.
* NRW-Express (RE/RRX 1) Aachen-Hamm
* Rhein-Hellweg-Express (RE11) Düsseldorf-Kassel.
ALSA Rail operates freight trains and heritage railway
A heritage railway or heritage railroad (U.S. usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) ...
s in Spain.
Accessible Transport
* National Express Accessible Transport (Door-to-door transport service for anyone who lives in the urban areas of the West Midlands who find it difficult or impossible to use conventional public transport.)
USA and Canada
Bus
* National Express Transit (transit and paratransit bus operation in the US, formed in 2012)
** JATRAN
** Kern Transit
** Manteca Transit
** Merced County Transit
** Victor Valley Transit Authority
** Westmoreland County Transit Authority
* A&S Transportation (school bus operations in Florida)
* A1A Transportation (school bus operations in Florida)
* Aristocrat Limousine and Bus (limo and charter bus service in New Jersey)
* Cook DuPage Transportation (paratransit service in Chicago area)
* Diamond Transportation (paratransit and shuttle service in Washington, DC area, acquired 2016)
* Durham School Services (school bus operation in the US)
* Monroe School Transportation (school and charter bus operations in Rochester, New York)
* New Dawn Transit (school bus operations in New York City)
* Petermann Transportation (school bus and special service bus operation in US, acquired 2011)
* Quality Bus Service (school bus operations in Orange County, New York)
* Queen City Transportation (school and charter bus operations in Ohio, acquired 2017)
* Stock Transportation (school bus operation in Canada)
* Suburban Paratransit (paratransit service in New York)
* Total Transit (transit and paratransit service in Arizona)
* Trans Express (shuttle, charter, tour, and casino service in New York, acquired 2015)
* Trinity Transportation (charter and school service in Michigan, acquired 2017)
* White Plains Bus (charter service in New York)
* In July 2014, National Express partners with Canadian-based online booking platform Busbud.
Middle East
Bus
In February 2015, the Bahrain Public Transport Company in which National Express holds a 50% shareholding commenced operating a 10-year concession in Bahrain
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
.
Former operations
Europe
Bus and coach
=Bus
=
In May 2009, National Express sold some of its bus operations to Abellio
Abellio (also Abelio and Abelionni) was a god worshiped in the Garonne Valley in Gallia Aquitania (now southwest France), known primarily by a number of inscriptions which were discovered in Comminges, in the Pyrenees. He may have been a god ...
:
* Travel London (bus operation under contract to Transport for London
Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom.
TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...
in London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
)
* Travel Surrey (bus operation Surrey
Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
and South West London – a subsidiary of Travel London)
In December 2020, National Express sold its Xplore Dundee business to McGill's Bus Services
McGill's Bus Services is a bus operator based in Greenock, Scotland. The company has grown to operate a network of routes covering much of the council areas of Inverclyde, East Renfrewshire, Renfrewshire, North Lanarkshire, Glasgow City (counci ...
.
=Coach
=
* Scottish Citylink sold to Metroline
Metroline is a bus operator operating primarily in Greater London and partially in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire. It is a subsidiary of ComfortDelGro and operates bus services for London Buses under contract to Transport for Lon ...
in August 1998 in order to comply with a Competition Commission
The Competition Commission was a non-departmental public body responsible for investigating mergers, markets and other enquiries related to regulated industries under competition law in the United Kingdom. It was a competition regulator under t ...
requirement for National Express to operate the ScotRail
ScotRail Trains Limited, trading as ScotRail (), is a Scottish train operating company that is publicly owned by Scottish Rail Holdings on behalf of the Scottish Government. It has been operating the ScotRail franchise as an operator of las ...
rail franchise
* City2City an express coach services in Germany that ceased on 14 October 2014.
* Stewarts Coaches (private coach hire and tours), previously part of National Express Transport Solutions, sold to the Coach Travel Group in December 2024.
Railway and tram
=Railway
=
Rail franchises formerly operated:
* Wales & Borders passed to Arriva Trains Wales in December 2003
* ScotRail
ScotRail Trains Limited, trading as ScotRail (), is a Scottish train operating company that is publicly owned by Scottish Rail Holdings on behalf of the Scottish Government. It has been operating the ScotRail franchise as an operator of las ...
passed to First ScotRail
First ScotRail was a train operating company in Scotland owned by FirstGroup. It operated the ScotRail franchise between October 2004 and March 2015.
On 17 October 2004, First ScotRail took over operations from the incumbent franchisee, ScotRai ...
in October 2004
* Wessex Trains, absorbed into Greater Western franchise and passed to First Great Western in April 2006
* West Anglia Great Northern split into two parts: West Anglia services transferred to National Express East Anglia April 2004, Great Northern services passed to First Capital Connect in April 2006
* In November 2007 several franchises were lost in a general restructure:
** Central Trains split between CrossCountry
CrossCountry (legal name XC Trains Limited) is a British train operating company owned by Arriva UK Trains, operating the current CrossCountry franchise.
The CrossCountry franchise was restructured by the Department for Transport (DfT) in 2006, ...
, East Midlands Trains and London Midland
London Midland was a train operating company in England which operated the West Midlands franchise between 11 November 2007 and 10 December 2017. It was owned by the British transport group Govia.
London Midland was created as a result of Gov ...
** Midland Mainline absorbed into East Midlands Trains franchise
** Silverlink split between London Midland and London Overground
London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, it now serves a large part of Greate ...
* Gatwick Express incorporated into Southern franchise in June 2008
* National Express East Coast passed to Directly Operated Railways in November 2009
* National Express East Anglia (including Stansted Express service) passed to Greater Anglia in February 2012
* c2c operated from May 1996 until sold to Trenitalia
Trenitalia Società per azioni, SpA is the primary train operator of Italy. A subsidiary of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, itself owned by the Italian government. It was established in 2000 following a European Union directive on the deregulati ...
in February 2017
=Tram
=
* National Express Midland Metro
National Express Midland Metro operated the Midland Metro tram system between Birmingham and Wolverhampton in England from May 1999 until June 2018. It was a subsidiary of National Express, who also owned the local bus company National Express W ...
(now West Midlands Metro tram line), passed to Transport for West Midlands in 2018.
=London & Continental Railways
=
National Express had a 17.5% shareholding in London & Continental Railways (L&CR) from its formation in September 1994 until it was nationalised by the Government of the United Kingdom
His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. in 2009. L&CR was responsible for building the High Speed 1
High Speed 1 (HS1), officially the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), is a high-speed railway linking London with the Channel Tunnel.
It is part of the line carrying international passenger traffic between the United Kingdom and mainland Euro ...
project. National Express also held a 40% stake in the Inter-Capital and Regional Rail consortium which held the management contract for the UK arm of the Eurostar
Eurostar is an international high-speed rail service in Western Europe, connecting Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
The service is operated by the Eurostar Group which was formed from the merger of Eurostar, ...
operation, L&CR's subsidiary Eurostar International from 1998 to 2010.
Airports
In the 1990s, National Express moved into the privatisation of airports, purchasing East Midlands
The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire (except for North Lincolnshire and North East ...
, Bournemouth
Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...
, and Humberside Airports. In a move to concentrate on bus and rail provision, Humberside was sold to Manchester Airports Group
Manchester Airports Group Limited, known as MAG is a British airport operator which owns three British airports: Manchester Airport, East Midlands Airport, and Stansted Airport.
The Group operates under Manchester Airports Holdings Limited, ...
in 1999 followed by Bournemouth and East Midlands in February 2001.
Until November 2007, the group also operated Stewart International Airport in New Windsor, New York. However, the lease was sold to the public Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, (PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ) is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate c ...
.
Australian operations
Bus and coach
Australian bus companies previously operated:
* Westbus and Hillsbus in Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, sold to ComfortDelGro Cabcharge in 2005, Westbus ceased operating in 2013, Hillsbus rebranded CDC NSW in 2023.
* Blue Ribbon in the Hunter Valley, sold to ComfortDelgro Cabcharge and rebranded Hunter Valley Buses in 2005.
* National Bus Company, Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
, sold to Ventura Bus Lines in 2004, ceased operating in 2013.
* National Bus Company, Brisbane
Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
, sold to Connex in 2004, now operating as Transdev Queensland.
* Southern Coast Transit, Perth
Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...
, sold to Connex in 2004, now operating as Transdev WA.
Railway and tram
In 1999, the Group gained the Australian franchises M>Train, M>Tram and V/Line Passenger, following the privatisation of rail and tram services by the Government of Victoria
The Victoria State Government, also referred to as the Victorian Government, is the Executive (government), executive government of the Australian state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria.
As a parliamentary system, parliamentary constitutiona ...
. After incurring large losses and being unable to renegotiate the franchise contracts, the operations were handed back to the State Government. M>Train was re-let to Connex and M>Tram to Transdev
Transdev, formerly Veolia Transdev, is a France-based international private-sector company which operates public transport. It has operations in 17 countries and territories as of November 2020.
Transdev was formed on 3 April 2011 via the merg ...
. V/Line became a government-owned corporation.
USA and Canada
Bus and coach
* ATC (transit and paratransit operations in the United States and Canada, sold to Veolia Environnement in 2005 and since renamed Veolia Transport
Veolia Transport (formerly Connex and CGEA Transport) was the international transport services division of the French-based multinational company Veolia until the 2011 merger that gave rise to Veolia Transdev, later renamed Transdev. Veolia Tr ...
).
* Yuma County Area Transit
* Arlington Transit (transit and paratransit operations in the United States from 2009 to 2019, transferred to First Transit in 2019)
* SolTrans
References
External links
Company website
{{Authority control
Bus groups in the United Kingdom
Companies based in Birmingham, West Midlands
Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange
Mobico Group
Transport companies established in 1972
Transport operators of the United Kingdom
1972 establishments in the United Kingdom
Companies in the FTSE 250 Index