Lugg Hole : Lugg Valley : Lugg Minster (3)

Problem Solved - Or Is It?

Yeomans has been around for ages running buses and tours ...

... with a tour brochure offered on-line today.

Yeomans has the same squiggles on its publicity and the same livery on its vehicles ...

... but once trading at Yeomans Canyon. 

Herefordshire bus experts would know about the Canyon name but fbb cannot find out its history. 

Like Lugg valley there was a stripey version of the paint scheme ...

... now supplanted by those squiggles!

But you would have to be very naive indeed not to realise that Lugg Valley and Yeomans are under the same management structure; as confirmed by yesterdays list of directorships held by Mr Nigel -

- whatever he actually looks like!

fbb can confirm that every one of those delightfully colour coded bus routes formerly operated by Lugg Valley ...

... is now operated by a totally separate and unconnected company called, erm ...

... Yeomans!

And there is no change in any of the timetables. The only change is that the buses will (eventually?) have Yeomans on the side and not Lugg Valley!

Concerns have been raised that a bus company is continuing to run services in Herefordshire while a linked firm is to be banned over safety concerns.

But, legally, the two firms are, indeed completely separate entities and are treated as such by the Law, by the VOSA and by the Traffic Commissioners.

Yeomans Travel operates about 40 public services, including school-only runs in the county.

The Hereford firm has the same sole director as Lugg Valley Travel, which was told it could not put on services for four years following an inquiry into the safety of its fleet.

A Yeomans spokesman said the sanctions were "nothing to do with this company".

Which is, technically true, although it does seem daft!

The VOSA inquiry told director Nigel Yeomans he would be banned from holding an operators licence from December 31.

It seems that the ban only applies to Lugg Valley - but even if it were a universal ban, a new "O" Licence holder could take over at Yeomans with no change to its expanded operation.

Jago Frost, from local pressure group Rail & Bus for Herefordshire, said: "The Lugg Valley situation definitely raises concerns as to the owner's attitude to safety, and it would be fair to say that we are alarmed."

To sanction Yeomans, the VOSA would have to find faults there and as yet there has been no spot inspection. Many bus watches think there should be, but legally it would have to be separate and start from a clean sheet of paper.

Meanwhile, it has emerged Yeomans Travel no longer operates the National Express bus service between Hereford and London.

A National Express spokesperson said the decision was made after the public inquiry.

So National Express regard the two as one!

They added: "The safety of our customers, employees and the public is our number one priority. Following a public inquiry, we have suspended Yeomans from operating our services and the 445 service between Hereford and London will be covered by our other partner operators."

What about the council that subsidies some of the transferred routes?

A Herefordshire Council spokesman said the authority undertook "due diligence" checks, including checks on safety standards compliance.

He said: "Our priority is to maintain continuity of services while ensuring public safety, and we will continue to monitor the situation closely and liaise with Yeomans and the relevant authorities."

But the fact remains ...

At the VOSA, a spokesperson said Lugg Valley Travel (NOT Yeomans - fbb) was investigated because that was the specific operator of the bus which caught fire.

Yeoman's is not our problem, guv, says the County!

A spokesman for the Traffic Commissioner's office said it acted upon submissions from the relevant bodies, adding: "Any investigations into Yeomans Travel would be separate."

So there we have it, or possibly we don't.

In one sense there is nothing for fbb to investigate. But it would be fair to suggest that the whole situation is less than satisfactory.  If the maintenance at Lugg Valley was "the worst the Traffic Commissioner had ever seen" you would think that a check at Yeomans depot would be a sensible precaution.

It's the same depot!

ugg Valley Travel Ltd, The Travel Centre,

Old School Lane, Hereford, HR1 1EX

And Yeomans?

Yeomans Canyon Tours Ltd, The Travel Centre,

Old School Lane, Hereford, HR1 1EX

Here is the Old School Lane depot ...

... with an aerial view.

Nice looking depot; with that tidy looking building, the company ought to get it right.

At least the bus passengers of Herefordshire still have their buses!

P.S. The depot is clearly near a railway and a map shows Old School Lane as north of the city's railway station.

Before the "crisis" you would generally see Lugg Valley buses at Leominster ...

... and Yeomans at Hereford.

 Next Variety blog : Sunday 4th Jan