Foreign Ownership On The Increase

Almost a quarter of the UK's bus industry is now in foreign ownership, according to data compiled by passenger transport specialists The TAS Partnership.

The company analysed the accounts of over 120 British bus companies as part of their Bus Industry Monitor project and concluded that 24.4 per cent of British bus operators now had overseas owners – up on previous studies.

The increased overseas stake in Britain’s bus industry follows the German state railway company Deutsche Bahn's purchase of Arriva in 2010.

The TAS Partnership's figures also showed that almost 70 per cent of the British bus industry, when measured by turnover, is controlled by just five major groups - FirstGroup, Stagecoach, Arriva, Go-Ahead and National Express.

That figure has risen from 64 per cent since they last carried out an analysis, the rise is being put down to Stagecoach’s decision to re-enter the London market with their purchase of the East London Bus Group in 2010.


Perth-based Stagecoach now has a 19.2 per cent share of the British bus market, which is a fraction behind Aberdeen-based FirstGroup. Although the biggest in Britain, cuts in First's network of services – I've blogged about this recently - and falls in fare revenue mean that their 19.6 per cent market share is actually the lowest its been since 1996.

The increased overseas stake in Britain’s bus industry follows the German state railway company Deutsche Bahn's purchase of Arriva in 2010.