MidlandRed.net

In the late 1970s, the Midland Red Omnibus Company Limited (MROC) converted a number of Ford R192 and R1014 buses into midibuses by shortening the chassis and removing the rear overhang.

When MROC was broken up on 5^th September 1981, two of these shortened Ford midibuses passed to the Midland Red (West) fleet.

At the formation of the company on 6^th September 1981, Midland Red (West) Limited acquired 60 Leyland Leopard buses and coaches from the Midland Red Omnibus Company Limited.  An additional 14 Leyland Leopard coaches were acquired on 23^rd December 1986 with the business of Midland Red Coaches Limited.

When the Midland Red Omnibus Company Limited (MROC) was split in to five smaller operational companies on 6^th September 1981, Midland Red (West) Limited inherited a total of 121 Leyland National buses.

An addional 64 Leyland National buses were acquired from other operators over the following nine years, plus six Leyland National Mark II Suburban Coaches were acquired new in 1984.

First Midland Red took delivery of four Transbus Enviro 300 buses in Janurary 2004, for use at their Hereford depot on Service 420 between Hereford and Worcester.

In 2005, an additional 35 examples were acquired for use at Redditch, Evesham, Worcester and Kidderminster depots.

In October 1987 Midland Red West were facing competition on their lucrative Service 57 & 58 from the newly formed “Redline Bus Company”.  Within two weeks Midland Red West had three Bristol VR double-deckers on loan from Bristol Omnibus Company Limitedto meet the competition.

Midland Red (West) Limited acquired four Daimler Fleetline double-decker buses shortly after the company was formed in September 1981.

In 1994, Midland Red West replaced all the Leyland Lynxs at Digbeth depot with a fleet of 37 new Dennis Lance buses, and in the following year they replaced all the Leyland Nationals at Worcester depot with an additional 19 new Dennis Lances.

From late 2003, First Midland Red acquired six Dennis Lance SLF buses from First Bristol.  One of these vehicles was later destroyed by fire, but the serviving examples are used on local Worcester city services.

An additional ten Lances with DP seating were acquired from First Cymru in early 2004.

First Midland Red Buses Ltd. started to take delivery of five new Dennis Trident double-decker buses from Friday 26^th November 2004.  These vehicles were the first double-decked vehicles acquired new the company since its formation on 6^th September 1981.

By summer 1988 the deregulated bus market in the West Midlands had started to settle down and the WMPTE started a process of introducing minibus routes to fill in between the main road commercial services. Midland Red West were successful in winning some of these new contracts and took the opportunity to use some surplus Fiat-IVECO minibuses from the Badgerline fleet.

Midland Red West acquired 50 Leyland Lynx buses for use at their Digbeth depot on 1^st April 1990.

Midland Red (West) Limited acquired their first Leyland Tiger in 1983, followed by 6 more examples in 1985.

On 23^rd December 1986, an additional 14 Leyland Tiger coaches were acquired when the business and vehicles of Midland Red Coaches Limited were taken over by Midland Red West Limited in a management buyout.

Although First Midland Red discontinued their coaching activities in the late 1990s, they continued to operate a small number of Leyland Tiger coaches on school services until 2005.

In 1983, Midland Red (West) Limited operated 5 demonstrator MAN SG192 Articulated buses at their Redditch depot.  These vehicles later passed to Midland Red (North) Limited at their Cannock depot.

In June 1986, Midland Red (Express) Limited acquired seven MCW Metroliners for National Express “Rapide” work.  These vehicles passed to Midland Red West Limited in December 1986, and remained with the company until 1989.

On 23^rd November 1985, Midland Red (West) Limited started operation their new Worcester “Citibus” services using a fleet of 60 new Mercedes-Benz L608D minibus, with an additional 44 examples acquired in 1986, for simular services in Kidderminster (“Shuttle”) and Redditch (“Reddilink”).

Throughout the 1990s, Midland Red West also acquired a large number of Mercedes-Benz L608D minibuses from other operators for use at Worcester, Kidderminster, Redditch and Hereford depots.

Midland Red West acquired their first new Mercedes 609D minibuses in late 1987 for use mainly on the new minibus services in Bewdley.  However, most of Midland Red West’s Mercedes 609D minibuses arrived the following year for use on the Hereford “Hopper” minibus service. Shortly after the turn of the century Midland Red West (by now called First Midland Red) acquired another 26 examples from First Eastern Counties which replaced older vehicles at Hereford depot.

Sixty-four Mercedes 0.814 Vario minibuses with B22F Plaxton Beaver Mk.II bodywork came into service with Midland Red West Limited at their Worcester depot on 1^st August 1998.  These vehicles have since seen service at all First Midland Red depots.

Withdrawals began in February 2004, with three examples passing to First Glasgow, and by the end of 2005, only ten examples remained with First Midland Red.

First Midland Red took delivery of their first two Optare Solo buses in April 2002, for use at their Hereford depot.

In March and April 2003, an additional ten examples were delivered to Worcester depot for use on cross-city “easyLINK” services.

An additional seven examples entered service at Hereford depot from October 2003, three of these were in distinctive yellow and lime green “WyeS Moves” livery to operate new services provide inter-community links in the South Wye area of Hereford.

In September 2005, First Midland Red acquired six Volvo B7 single-deck buses from First Leicester.  Some of these vehicles were later exchanged for simular vehicles from First Northampton.  All the Volvos passed to First Northanpton in August and September 2007.

Information about vehicles operated by Midland Red West for short periods and in small numbers.

• Mercedes 508D
• Mercedes 811D
• Renault Master
• Peugeot-Talbot Pullman
• Volvo Citybus B10M
• Volvo B10M
• Bedford YMT