Member Article

Celebrate 50 Years Of Buses At Stagecoach Family Fun Day

To mark the 50th year since the formation of Teesside Municipal Transport, Stagecoach North East is opening the doors to its Teesside depot in Stockton and inviting the public along to a free family day of fun to enjoy the celebrations.

The local bus company is welcoming families to come on Sunday 8th April and take part in the festivities, which include a static display of historic buses from The Teesside 500 Group, a popular local bus interest group which preserves Teesside’s transport history.

Alongside the historic vehicles, will be the latest modern eco friendly buses, with ‘green’ gas and hybrid buses for visitors to view. In addition, a series of activities and games will be available, including a chance to see ‘behind the scenes’ at how the buses are maintained, hazard perception tests for all the family, riding through a bus wash and seeing your name on the bus destination screen.

With free entry for all, there will also be refreshments, stalls, tombola, competitions, a recruitment stand and fundraising for the Stockton children’s autism charity, Daisy Chain.

Nathan Stanislawski, Operations Manager for Stagecoach North East’s Stockton depot, said: “The open day is a great opportunity for the local community to see behind the scenes at a bus depot and find out more about what we do, as well as have fun and enjoy a day out. We are also delighted to join The Teesside 500 Group in celebrating 50 years of Teesside Municipal Transport, which historically Stagecoach North East is a valuable part of after taking over Cleveland Transit in 1994.

“There is something for everyone at the open day, from rides through the bus wash and competitions to the opportunity to get detailed information about operating buses. It would be great to see lots of local people from Stockton and the wider Teesside area at the depot on Sunday and to make the event a real success. We hope that everyone has a great time!”

Bill Woodward, Chairman of The Teesside 500 Group said: “The Teesside 500 Group is delighted to be joining Stagecoach in commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the formation of Teesside Municipal Transport.

“We are pleased to be able to showcase our preservation of this heritage as our contribution to the great day which Stagecoach has organised for families and for anybody curious to see behind the scenes of a modern-day bus company.”

The Group’s four buses include one of the very first and one of the last buses to wear the Teesside Turquoise livery. They will also display a 60-year-old Middlesbrough Corporation bus and a 40-year-old bus from which Teesside Municipal Transport later morphed into Cleveland Transit. The Teesside 500 Group has also arranged for a special surprise visitor to attend the Open Day, subject to its ability to travel.

Bill added: “The buses will provide an interesting contrast to the modern Stagecoach fleet and will allow visitors to appreciate how bus travel has improved over the intervening 50 years.

“We are particularly pleased that our green and yellow Cleveland Transit bus will be providing the free shuttle service, running about every 20 minutes, between Stockton High Street and the Open Day. Hopefully this will be a good curtain-raiser and will set the tone for a great day out.”

The event is open from 10am until 4pm at the Stagecoach Stockton depot on Church Road. While entry is free, there will be small charge to take part in some of the activities, with all proceeds going to charity.

Visitors are encouraged to use the free shuttle bus provided from Stockton High Street, starting at 9.45am from the Stand J and running approximately every 20 minutes.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Kathryn Clapham .