Product Code Database
Ulsterbus is a public transport operator in Northern Ireland and operates bus services outside Belfast. It is part of Translink, the brand name for the subsidiary operating companies of the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company, which also includes Northern Ireland Railways and Metro Belfast.
Werner Heubeck was the first managing director of both Ulsterbus and Citybus, managing both companies throughout The Troubles from his appointment in 1965 until his retirement in 1988. A former Luftwaffe conscript, Heubeck became known for carrying bombs off buses and for making Northern Ireland's buses profitable and running to schedule despite the security situation, and received both an OBE in 1977 and a CBE on his retirement in 1988.
The Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company was rebranded to Translink in 1996. Ulsterbus and Citybus, as well as Northern Ireland's rail services, were integrated into Translink and were subsequently rebranded. Translink have built and refurbished a number of bus stations served by Ulsterbus and have invested in a fully low-floor bus fleet, as well as introducing brands such as the Foyle Metro.
Ulsterbus, as part of Translink, is charged with transporting over 55,000 children per day across Northern Ireland to school. Every July and August, around 250 vehicles are usually de-taxed. This is because not as many are needed for service due to schools finishing for summer holidays.
Goldliner services are primarily operated from Belfast to major destinations in Northern Ireland, as well as 'Xpress' branded cross-border Goldline Express Services X1 (previously service 200) to Dublin (via Dublin Airport). This service was worked jointly with Bus Éireann's service X1 (previously service 001) until December 2020, after which Bus Éireann withdrew their X1. There is also a X2 operating express between Belfast and Dublin Airport without any intermediate stops between them.
There are also a number of cross-channel (North Channel) services to Great Britain, operated in partnership with National Express under the Eurolines banner.
Ulsterbus Foyle was later rebranded as Foyle Metro on 1 September 2017, with buses branded in a deep red livery. The rebranded service, representing an investment of over £3 million, included 19 brand new buses delivered and many others refurbished to operates across 14 quality bus corridors with new timetables.
In 2022, £30 million of funding from the Department for Infrastructure was acquired for the purchase of 38 battery electric buses, as well as charging equipment to be installed at the Foyle Metro's Pennyburn garage. The buses, ten being Wright StreetDeck Electroliner double-decks and 28 being Wright GB Kite Electroliner single-decks, were delivered in May 2023, with the fleet rolled out onto city services to replace existing diesel buses from August onwards, enabling the Foyle Metro fleet to be completely zero-emission.
Two Ulsterbus Goldline coaches have suffered engine fires while in service; a coach bound for Belfast caught fire outside of Lurgan, County Armagh in November 2016, while another caught fire on the M2 in County Antrim in July 2021, which the company states was caused by "accidental ignition".
An Urby bus was hijacked and set alight by "masked men" on the morning of 1 November 2021 in Newtownards. The bus had recently entered service in the Bowtown estate when hijackers held the driver at gunpoint and "muttered something about the (Northern Ireland) protocol" before setting the bus alight. No passengers were on board at the time, but the bus was totally destroyed and the driver left "badly shaken". The attack was widely condemned by members of the Northern Ireland Assembly and all buses to the town were briefly suspended.
A double-decker Urby school bus carrying 43 pupils from Strangford College overturned in a field near Carrowdore on 7 October 2024 after colliding with a post. The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service declared a major incident at the scene due to the number of ambulances required to attend, with the incident resulting in four pupils being taken to hospital and the rest onboard being released with minor injuries.
Prior to the advent of , the Ulsterbus fleet mainly consisted of locally assembled Alexander-bodied , , and Volvo B10Ms. Many of these would be hijacked and maliciously destroyed throughout The Troubles, and as such, second-hand Bristol, Leyland and AEC buses were regularly purchased from bus operators in other parts of the UK.
The last Leyland Tiger of a fleet of over 600 was handed over to the company in September 1993, with Ulsterbus moving over to the Volvo B10M following the closure of Leyland Bus. Most high-floor Ulsterbus buses were withdrawn by the mid-2000s; the last Leyland Leopards were finally withdrawn in 2006, with 681 being built for Ulsterbus and 228 of these being maliciously destroyed.
Following an order for 40 Leyland Atlanteans in 1971, no further double decker buses were ordered, as they were seen as expensive to run and not offering good value for money at the time. In 2001, however, double decker buses were reintroduced to Northern Ireland through the purchase of 20 low-floor bus Volvo B7TLs with Alexander ALX400 bodywork for both Ulsterbus and Citybus.
|
|
