Tellings-Golden Miller

Caetano Enigma coach in Tellings-Golden Miller livery in July 2008
Parent Arriva
Headquarters London
Service type Coach tours, local and airport bus services
Fleet 211 buses
45 coaches
Website www.tellingsgoldenmiller.co.uk

Tellings-Golden Miller[1] is a charter coach operator in England. It is a subsidiary of Arriva.

History

Golden Miller

Reputedly, Fred Varney founded the Golden Miller company with the winnings from a bet made on the horse Golden Miller, which won the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Grand National in 1934.[2]

In 1955 Golden Miller was sold to FG Wilder & Sons Limited of Feltham with two coaches and a booking office in Twickenham. In 1967 Wilder bought out Tourist Bus Service which had one vehicle and a stage carriage licence for route 601 between Feltham station and East Bedfont, which it had operated since 1955. In 1968 routes 602 (Feltham to Shepperton) and 603 (Feltham to Hanworth via Elmwood Avenue) were added.

In 1970 the route from Walton-on-Thames to Walton-on-Thames station was taken over from Walton-on-Thames Motor Co Limited and extended to Oatlands village as route 604. Route 605 was planned for the Claygate area but did not come into effect, and route 606 began in 1971 from Staines to Stanwell Moor and Stanwell village.[3]

Tellings-Golden Miller

Alexander Dennis Enviro200 Dart in OFJ Connections livery in April 2008
Van Hool bodied Volvo B12BT in Classic Coaches livery in August 2008
Plaxton Paragon bodied Volvo B7R in Link Line livery in August 2008
Northern Counties Palatine 2 bodied DAF in Wiltax livery in April 2008

In June 1985 Wilder sold Golden Miller to Tellings Coaches of Byfleet, a family-run concern which had been founded by Stephen Telling in 1972.[2] Routes 601 and 603 were transferred to Fountain Coaches of Feltham from October 1985; these routes being combined as route 600 (East Bedfont to Hanworth via Feltham) in June 1986. The Golden Miller business continued to operate routes 602 and 606[4] until about 1988.

In 1989 the company was taken over by Midland Fox. A small number of London Transport contracted routes were won by the company over the following two years. However, by 1993 Midland Fox had itself been acquired by British Bus and was no longer willing to operate TGM. Stephen Telling re-acquired the company with financial support from Julian Peddle, and also took over Classic Coaches.[5]

In 2003 the company was floated on the Alternative Investment Market.[2] TGM operates coaches and maintains subsidiaries in Cambridgeshire, Essex, Suffolk, Surrey and the North East of England, and operates services under the Classic Coaches, Excel Passenger Logistics, Flight Delay Services, Link Line Coaches, Network Colchester and OFJ Connections brands.

The company previously ran bus services in South West London and north west Surrey, inheriting some through acquisition of Capital Logistics. These services were sold to National Express in June 2005 and incorporated into its Travel London business. As part of the deal Tellings Golden Miller became a National Express contractor, running several coach routes out of its Cambridge and Portsmouth garages.[6][7]

In June 2007 Tellings-Golden Miller re-entered the Surrey bus business with the purchase of Wiltax, New Haw with 20 buses from Rotala.[8][9] In December 2007 Tellings-Golden Miller was purchased by Arriva.[10]

In April 2008, TGM acquired Excel Passenger Logistics based at Stansted Airport and its associated companies Excel Gatwick and Flight Delay Services based at Manchester Airport.[11] In April 2008, the Wiltax operations were scaled back with most routes passing to other operators. Some routes continued to be run by Wiltax, but from Tellings-Golden Miller's Heathrow depot. In September 2008, Wiltax' New Haw depot closed, with all operations transferred to TGM's Heathrow depot.

In February 2010 the Haverhill operations of Burton's Coaches, together with the name, were sold to Yellow Star Travel Services. The National Express services had been earlier transferred to the Stansted depot of Excel Passenger Logistics. Burton's ceased operating in May 2011.[12] In August 2010, TGM Group took over the Arriva Shires & Essex services from Harlow garage, with a Network Harlow identity for the local routes (similar to Network Colchester).

On 31 May 2014, Tellings-Golden Miller once again became a Transport for London contracted operator when it commenced operating route E10 from its Heathrow depot, the first route it has operated in London since the late 1990s.[13][14] In January 2016, as part of a decision to consolidate all of Arriva's Transport for London routes, route E10 was transferred to Arriva London.[15][16]

Subsidiaries

References

  1. ↑ Companies House extract company no 2849795 Tellings Golden Miller Limited
  2. 1 2 3 £20m payday for driver turned boss The Mail on Sunday 13 July 2003
  3. ↑ Fleetbook - Buses of London by RL Telfer & AM Witton
  4. ↑ London Bus Handbook Volume 2 (1987)
  5. ↑ Millar, Alan (March 2009). "What Julian Did Next". Buses (648): 31–32.
  6. ↑ "National Express Group purchases the London Bus Division of Tellings Golden Miller". 1 June 2005. Retrieved 6 February 2014.
  7. ↑ Interim Report for the Six Months Ended 30 June 2006 Tellings Golden Miller Group
  8. ↑ Tellings acquires 20-vehicle Wiltax Buses Bus & Coach Professional 5 June 2007
  9. ↑ Acquisition Tellings Golden Miller Group
  10. ↑ Arriva plc offer for TGM Group plc Arriva 20 December 2007
  11. ↑ TGM expands with airport acquisitions Bus & Coach Professional 10 April 2008
  12. ↑ Millar, Alan (July 2011). "Stephensons steps in after Burton's collapse". Buses. Ian Allan Publishing (676): 7.
  13. ↑ Bus tender results Transport for London 11 October 2013
  14. ↑ Provision of Bus Service - Route E10 Tenders.co.uk
  15. ↑ Arriva London adds four more garages Arriva London
  16. ↑ "Arriva London" Buses Magazine Issue 731 February 2016 page 66

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