First Beeline

First Beeline
Alexander Dennis Enviro200 at High Wycombe Eden bus station in November 2013
ParentFirstGroup
FoundedOctober 1986
HeadquartersFareham[1]
LocaleSlough
Service typeBus services
Routes9 (June 2024)[2]
DestinationsSlough
Heathrow Airport
Winsdor
Depots2
Fleet53 (June 2024)
Websitewww.firstbus.co.uk/berkshire-thames-valley/

First Beeline Buses Limited,[3] trading as First Beeline, is a bus operator providing services in and around Slough. It is a subsidiary of FirstGroup.

History

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Wright Axcess-Ultralow bodied Scania L113CRB in Camberley in 2009

In January 1986 Alder Valley North Limited, later renamed, The Berks Bucks Bus Company[4] took over the Bracknell, High Wycombe, Maidenhead, Newbury, Reading and Wokingham operations of Alder Valley as part of the preparation for privatisation of the National Bus Company, trading as "Beeline" once the name was changed in October 1986. In late 1987 The Berks Bucks Bus Company was sold to Q Drive.[5]

In 1990 the High Wycombe operations were sold to the Oxford Bus Company, and in 1992 the Reading and Newbury operations were sold to Reading Buses. In 1993 Beeline purchased the Slough operations of Luton & District Transport, until 1986 the Slough depot of London Country Bus Services and later part of the London Country North West division.[5]

In March 1996 Beeline was sold to CentreWest who in turn was sold to FirstGroup in March 1997. Initially trading as First Beeline, in 2001 it was rebranded as First Berkshire & The Thames Valley.

Following the loss of nine Bracknell Forest Council supported services to Courtney Buses on 13 July 2015 and the sale of route 90 Bracknell to Reading to Reading Buses on 26 July 2015, the Bracknell garage closed on 28 August 2015.[6][7][8]

In April 2023, the company was rebranded to First Beeline.[9]

Services

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First Beeline currently operates bus services in and around Slough and to surrounding areas including Heathrow Airport, Maidenhead and High Wycombe.[10] The company also operates the RailAir coach services connecting Heathrow Airport with surrounding major National Rail stations.[11]

The company were the primary operator of services in and around Maidenhead until 2004 when most local services were withdrawn. These services are now operated by Thames Valley Buses.[12]

The company also formerly operated the Green Line branded routes 702 and 703 between London, Heathrow Airport, Slough, Windsor, Legoland and Bracknell. Operation of these services transferred to Reading Buses in December 2017.[13]

Bus Services

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A First Beeline Wright StreetLite in Slough bus station

First Beeline currently operate the following bus services:[10]

Route Start End
3 Slough Uxbridge
6 Wexham Knolton Way Estate Maidenhead
7 Britwell Heathrow Terminal 5[a]
8 Slough Heathrow Terminal 5 via Windsor, Englefield Green, Egham and Staines
12/13 (13 Peak Hours only) Slough Burnham
A4 Cippenham Heathrow Central
X74 Slough High Wycombe

RailAir Coach Services

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Main article: RailAir
A RailAir branded coach on route RA1 at Reading station

First Beeline currently operate the following RailAir branded coach services:[11]

Route Start End
RA1[14] Reading Heathrow Terminal 3
RA2[15] Guildford Heathrow Terminal 3
RA3[16] Watford Heathrow Terminal 3
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See also

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References

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  1. ^ Companies House extract company no 2179403 First Beeline Buses Limited
  2. ^ "About us | First Bus". Archived from the original on 6 June 2024.
  3. ^ Companies House extract company no 2179403 First Beeline Buses Limited
  4. ^ Companies House extract company no 1966624 First Rail Support Limited formerly The Berks Bucks Bus Company Limited
  5. ^ a b The BeeLine Timeline Archived 12 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine Busworld
  6. ^ Changes coming for Bracknell's bus users Get Reading 25 June 2015
  7. ^ "Courtney Buses takes over First Bracknell services" Coach & Bus Week issue 1198 21 July 2015 page 10
  8. ^ We take over route 90 to Bracknell Archived 11 July 2015 at the Wayback Machine Reading Buses
  9. ^ "Timetable Guide - April 23" (PDF). First Bus. 2 April 2023. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  10. ^ a b "Beeline Network Map: August 2023" (PDF). First Beeline. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  11. ^ a b "RailAir Routes and Timetables". RailAir. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  12. ^ "Maidenhead Bus Services". Thames Valley Buses. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  13. ^ "Popular bus route to continue after Reading Buses assume control". 20 November 2017.
  14. ^ "RailAir RA1: Reading to Heathrow Airport" (PDF). RailAir. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  15. ^ "RailAir RA2: Guildford and Woking to Heathrow Airport" (PDF). RailAir. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  16. ^ "RailAir RA3: Watford Junction to Heathrow Airport" (PDF). RailAir. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  1. ^ Limited early morning bus extended to Heathrow Central
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