Stagecoach Gold

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Stagecoach in Oxfordshire Gold-branded Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC operating route 7 in Oxford
ParentStagecoach
FoundedNovember 2007
Service typeLuxury bus
Routes49
FleetAlexander Dennis Enviro300
(Integral, MAN 18.240, Scania K230UB)
Alexander Dennis Enviro400
(Scania N230UD)
Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMC
(Integral)
Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC
(Integral, Scania N250UD)
OperatorStagecoach East
Stagecoach East Kent
Stagecoach East Scotland
Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire
Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire
Stagecoach Midlands
Stagecoach South
Stagecoach South Wales
Stagecoach South West
Stagecoach West
Stagecoach Yorkshire
Websitewww.stagecoachgold.com

Stagecoach Gold was a luxury bus sub-brand used by various Stagecoach bus subsidiaries in the United Kingdom.

Stagecoach Gold (originally Goldline) was launched in 2007 and was designed to attract more middle-class passengers to choose bus travel as a method of transport as well as to reward passengers on some busy and popular routes.

Stagecoach West currently runs the most Stagecoach Gold routes, nine, as of August 2022. Stagecoach Midlands owns the largest number of Stagecoach Gold branded vehicles with 63 in its fleet as of August, 2023.

As part of a makeover of its UK business, work began in February 2020 on the removal of Gold branding in some cases by withdrawal of the routes or transferring services to other operators.

History

Interior of a Stagecoach South Alexander Dennis Enviro300 bodied MAN 18.240 in February 2009
The original Stagecoach Goldline logo, replaced in 2009 by the current branding

The Goldline brand was introduced to try to win more middle-class motorists to bus services. The brand was initially trialled in both Perth, using Alexander Dennis Enviro300 single-deck buses, and Warwick, using Optare Solo midibuses, from November 2007, both on routes which received Kickstart funding from the Department for Transport to help establish the routes. Stagecoach East Scotland invested £300,000 to demonstrate the idea to politicians.[1][2]

Goldline routes have a luxury specification. Buses have hand-stitched leather seats, metallic paint, special flooring and free WiFi. Drivers wear a special uniform and there is a Goldline customer charter.[1]

In February 2009 the service was expanded to Aldershot and in September 2009 to Cheltenham and Gloucester on route 94. At this stage the brand name changed from Goldline to Stagecoach Gold, as well as the introduction of a new livery with brighter swoops added, as opposed to the previous gold and blue only livery. The reason behind the name change was that Translink had the rights to the Goldline name, using it on their Ulsterbus coach services, and Stagecoach had to pay Translink a royalty.

In 2010, the Stagecoach Gold brand was extended to services run by Scottish Citylink, where Stagecoach have a 35% shareholding, where the Glasgow to Aberdeen and Glasgow to Inverness services were designated as Citylink Gold.[3]

In 2015, all brand new Stagecoach Gold vehicles came equipped with USB charging facilities underneath every seat which enabled passengers to charge their mobile devices whilst on board. USB charging first became available on the Stagecoach in Oxfordshire S4 service which was upgraded to Stagecoach Gold in September 2015.

As of 2016, all brand new Stagecoach buses, including non-gold vehicles, come equipped with high back leather seats, USB charging facilities and many with free onboard Wi-Fi. Subsequently, this means that many of Stagecoach's new non-gold vehicles are now at the same specification as the Gold branded vehicles. As a result, some non-gold routes now have higher specification vehicles than many of the Gold routes as prior to 2015, Stagecoach Gold vehicles did not come equipped with USB charging facilities.

2016 also saw Stagecoach take delivery of the first Stagecoach Gold branded Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC and Enviro200 MMC vehicles. The liveries on the new vehicles remain the same as the previous models; however, Stagecoach have slightly modified the interior upholstery with new style leather seats that incorporate a cream-coloured headrest as well as new wood effect flooring.

Routes

Stagecoach South West Alexander Dennis Enviro400 bodied Scania N230UD in Totnes in July 2014
Two Stagecoach West Alexander Dennis Enviro400 bodied Scania N230UDs in Bicester on route S5 in April 2013
Stagecoach Midlands Gold branded Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMC

As of October 2025, there were 26 Stagecoach Gold routes (including night services).

No./Name Route start Route end Refs
Stagecoach West
55 Chippenham Swindon [4]
S3/NS3 Chipping Norton/Charlbury Oxford [5]
S5/NS5 Bicester [6][7]
S6 Swindon [8][9]
S7 Witney [10]
S9/NS9 Wantage [11][12][13]
Stagecoach South
1 and 34 Aldershot Old Dean [14]
Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire
471/472 Heswall Liverpool [15][16]
Stagecoach South East
16 Hythe Canterbury [17]
Stagecoach Midlands
X4 Peterborough Northampton [18]
X46/X47 Northampton Raunds [19][20]
Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire
300/301 Carlisle Whitehaven [21]
Stagecoach Yorkshire
50/50A Chesterfield Sheffield [22]
Stagecoach South Wales
1/2/5/6/7 Cwmbran [23]
26 Blackwood Cardiff [24]
132 Maerdy [25]
151 Blackwood Newport [24]
X24 Blaenavon [26]

Other routes

Scottish Citylink Plaxton Elite bodied Volvo B12M (right) at Inverness bus station in September 2011
No./Name Route start Route end Refs
Scottish Citylink
G9 Glasgow Aberdeen [27]
G10 Glasgow Inverness

Former routes

Route NumberRouteOperatorNotes
GoldPlymouth - Torquay - Totnes - DartmouthStagecoach South WestGold status removed due to service splitting.
  • Totnes - Dartmouth section replaced by service 92.
  • Plymouth to Torquay section remembered to the 80.
1/X1Liverpool - ChesterStagecoach Merseyside & South LancashireGold status removed due to service rebranding.
5Chester - Huntington/WrexhamGold status removed due to service rebranding.
7Scone - HillendStagecoach East ScotlandGold status removed.
9 Chester - Piper's Ash Stagecoach Merseyside & South LancashireGold status removed due to service rebranding.
10Lower Tuffley - CheltenhamStagecoach WestGold status removed due to service rebranding.[28][29]
13Cambridge - HaverhillStagecoach EastGold status removed.
38West Kirby - Eastham FerryStagecoach Merseyside & South LancashireGold status removed due to service rebranding.
48Coventry - Nuneaton - Atherstone - LeicesterStagecoach MidlandsService split into 48A, 48C and 48L in 2020 but retains gold status
48C Nuneaton - Coventry Merged back together as 148 between Coventry & Leicester[30]
48A Nuneaton - Atherstone
48L Nuneaton - Leicester
51Selsey - ChichesterStagecoach SouthGold status removed due to service rebranding.[31]
57/N57Exeter - ExmouthStagecoach South WestGold status removed due to service rebranding.
63Forest Green - GloucesterStagecoach WestGold status removed due to service rebranding.
66Cheltenham/Stroud/Dursley - GloucesterGold status removed due to route changes and low passenger usage.
93Arle Court P&R - Cheltenham Town CentreGold status removed, then service was withdrawn.
94/94X/N94Cheltenham - GloucesterGold Status removed due to the introduction of electric buses.
97/98Gold status removed due to service rebranding.
120/130Blaencwm - CaerphillyStagecoach South WalesGold status removed.
125Preston - BoltonStagecoach Merseyside & South LancashireGold status removed due to service rebranding.
148Coventry - LeicesterStagecoach MidlandsGold status removed due to the introduction of electric buses.
G1Warwick - South FarmService withdrawn.[32] Replaced by service 1.
S1/S2/NS1Carterton/Witney - OxfordStagecoach WestGold status removed due to service rebranding.[33][34]
S4/H4Banbury - Oxford/JR HospitalGold status removed due to vehicle reshuffle.
S7Carterton - Oxford/HeadingtonGold status removed due to low passenger usage and route being discontinued.
S8/NS8/34Wantage/Harwell Campus - OxfordGold status removed due to an operator change to Thames Travel.[35][36]
SW1Carterton - LondonService withdrawn in May 2015 due to low passenger numbers.
Severn ExpressBristol - NewportService withdrawn in June 2020 due to low passenger numbers.
X4/X5Workington - PenrithStagecoach Cumbria & North LancashireGold status removed due to service rebranding.[37][38][39]
X5Cribbs Causeway - Weston-super-MareStagecoach WestService withdrawn in June 2020 due to low passenger numbers.
X14Cribbs Causeway - ChepstowService withdrawn in June 2020 due to low passenger numbers.
X17Barnsley - WirksworthStagecoach YorkshireGold status removed due to the introduction of electric buses.
X46Exeter - PaigntonStagecoach South WestService withdrawn due to low passenger numbers.

See also

References

  1. Millar, Allan (December 2007). "£2m two-town trial for Stagecoach's new luxury bus brand". Buses. No. 633. Hersham: Ian Allan Publishing. p. 6.
  2. "New-look Enviro for Stagecoach Goldline route". Bus & Coach Professional. 31 October 2007. Archived from the original on 5 November 2007. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  3. "Stagecoach Gold 55". Stagecoach. Stagecoach West. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  4. "S3 Bus Route & Timetable: Oxford - Chipping Norton". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  5. "S5 Bus Route & Timetable: Oxford - Bicester". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 28 August 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  6. "NS5 Bus Route & Timetable: Oxford - Bicester". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 28 August 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  7. "66 Bus Route & Timetable: Swindon - Faringdon". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 24 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  8. "66 Bus Route & Timetable: Faringdon - Oxford". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 24 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  9. "S7 Bus Route & Timetable: Oxford - Witney".
  10. Grant, Peter (17 October 2017). "Stagecoach announces two new Wantage bus services to launch this Sunday". Times Series. Archived from the original on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  11. "Oxfordshire Bus Services and Frequencies" (PDF). Oxfordshire County Council. 2 July 2015. p. 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 March 2013. Retrieved 24 February 2018. 34 Stagecoach Oxford - Abingdon - Steventon - Harwell Campus - Wantage Mon-Fri
  12. "S9 Timetable" (PDF). Stagecoach Bus. Stagecoach West. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  13. "1 Bus Route & Timetable: Aldershot - Old Dean". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 24 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  14. "471 Bus Route & Timetable: Heswall Bus Station - Liverpool, Cook Street". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 24 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  15. "472 Bus Route & Timetable: Liverpool, Cook Street - Heswall Bus Station". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 24 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  16. "16 Bus Route & Timetable: Canterbury - Saltwood". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  17. "Stagecoach Gold X4 - luxury at no extra cost". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 31 July 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  18. "X46 Bus Route & Timetable: Northampton - Raunds". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  19. "X47 Bus Route & Timetable: Northampton - Raunds". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  20. "300/301 Whitehaven - Carlisle (brochure)" (PDF). Stagecoach. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  21. "Your Service 50 between Sheffield and Chesterfield is changing". Stagecoach. Retrieved 12 May 2019.
  22. "We've gone gold in Cwmbran town". Stagecoach Bus. Stagecoach South Wales. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  23. "Service 151 and 26 gold". Stagecoach Bus. Stagecoach South Wales. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  24. "132 Bus Route & Timetable: Cardiff - Maerdy". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  25. "X24 Bus Route & Timetable: Newport - Blaenavon". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  26. "Citylink Gold - More than a Journey - times, tickets and prices". Scottish Citylink. Retrieved 18 July 2010.
  27. "10 Bus Route & Timetable: Lower Tuffley - Cheltenham". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 15 September 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  28. "Stagecoach West introduces 21 new buses to Cheltenham & Gloucester fleet". Stagecoach. 21 June 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  29. Harrison, Claire (22 February 2018). "GOLD buses to hit the streets of Nuneaton". Coventry Telegraph. Retrieved 28 February 2018.
  30. "Welcome aboard your new look Route 51". Stagecoach Bus. Stagecoach South. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  31. "G1 Bus Route & Timetable: Warwick - South Farm". Stagecoach Bus. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  32. "Carterton and Witney to Oxford by bus". Stagecoach Bus. Stagecoach West. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  33. "Stagecoach in Oxfordshire announces roll out of new fleet worth £5 million". Stagecoach Bus. Stagecoach West. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  34. "Oxford - Wantage NS8" (PDF). Marcham Parish Council. 22 October 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  35. "Changes to Oxford's bus network aimed at securing services". Oxfordshire County Council. 25 November 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
  36. "X4 Bus Route & Timetable: Workington - Keswick". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 24 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  37. "X5 Bus Route & Timetable: Keswick - Penrith". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 24 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  38. "X5 Bus Route & Timetable: Workington - Keswick". Stagecoach. Archived from the original on 24 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.