MTL (transport company)
Infobox Defunct Company
company_name = MTL Trust Holdings Ltd
company_
slogan = Moving with the times
fate = Bankruptcy
successor = Arriva plc
foundation = 1992
defunct = 2000
location = Merseyside
industry = Transport
products = Rail transport, Bus transport, Coach travel
MTL Trust Holdings Ltd was a former bus, coach and train operator based in Merseyside, UK. MTL was originally the operating company of Merseytravel, the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive. To comply with the Transport Act 1985, this was divested into a new independent company, Merseyside Transport Limited (MTL). Merseytravel retained a shareholding interest, but this was bought by MTL in 1993.cite web|url=http://www.merseytravel.gov.uk/pdf/history_Merseytravel.pdf|title=History of Merseytravel] The company after an extra-ordinary general shareholders meeting agreed to sell all its shares to Arriva plc. [citeweb|url=http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,238701,00.html|publisher=Guardian Unlimited|title=There'll be £13,500 along for bus drivers employees]
Railway operations
MTL was awarded two railway franchises in 1997, following the privatisation of British Rail. Both franchises were taken over by Arriva in 2000. [cite web|url=http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200102/cmselect/cmtlgr/239/23910.htm|title=Passenger Rail Franchises as of January 31 2002]
Northern Spirit was a large franchise operating services across the whole of Yorkshire, including the Settle & Carlisle line and much of the North East. The franchise also included TransPennine Express trains from Liverpool and Blackpool to Scarborough, Hull and Newcastle. These services were eventually demerged into a separate franchise. Following the takeover by Arriva, the franchise became Arriva Trains Northern.
Merseyrail Electrics was responsible for running the Merseyrail network in Merseyside. All services were subsidised by Merseytravel. The franchise was succeeded by Arriva Trains Merseyside following Arriva's takeover.
Their original bus division, Merseybus evolved into several new brand names, many outside of Merseyside, expanding into Manchester, North London, Lancaster, Warrington and South Lancashire. The company also owned Sightseers, a coach holiday business and had a full ABTA travel agency "The TravelShop" in Williamson Square, Liverpool and in Eastbank Street, Southport. MTL Services employed many cleaning, maintenance and security staff in London and on Merseyside whilst MTL Engineering refurbished many hundreds of vehicles at the Edge Lane plant in Liverpool.
The company expanded when it acquired local Merseyside bus operators Fareway Passenger Services, Kirkby and Liverbus, Huyton which by this time had grown to about 50 buses each. They then purchased Blue Triangle, Bootle.
Merseybus
The principal branding for the former Merseyside Transport (PTE) bus operation from 26th October 1986. Merseybus encompassed the following depots and divisions:
* Liverpool North Division - Gillmoss, Green Lane and Walton (Carisbroke Road, also known as Spellow Lane).
* Liverpool South Division - Edge Lane, Garston (Speke Road) and Speke (Shaw Road, also known as Woodend Avenue).
* St Helens Division - Jackson/Shaw Street.
* Southport Division - Canning Road.
* Wirral Division - Birkenhead, Laird Street.
Liverpool's Prince Alfred Road (Penny Lane), Litherland and Wallasey's Seaview Road depots were not transferred to Merseybus and remained with Merseyside PTE and were ultimately sold for redevelopment. Prior to this Merseyside PTE used these depots to store 'non-standard' vehicles Merseybus didn't take on. These included a batch of five relatively modern Wiilowbrook-bodied Dennis Dominator's that had been based at the Speke depot. Four were purchased by Maidstone & District, the other by Citybus of Hong Kong. Other notable types not taken on by Merseybus included the Bristol VR/East Lancs, many of which ended up with Merseybus's first notable competitor, Fareway Passenger Services Ltd, MCW/Scania Metropolitans and some life-expired Leyland Atlantean and Nationals. However a significant proportion of the vehicles taken on by Merseybus were considerably older than these vehicles and included some of the K and most of the L-registration Leyland Atlantean/Alexander AL-types dating from 1971-73 and the increasing age profile of the Merseybus/MTL fleet - including the companies MTL would eventually acquire - would be a major issue for Merseybus/MTL right up to its acquisition by Arriva plc in 2000.
Under Merseyside Transport, Merseyside's bus network enjoyed quite intensive provision with high frequencies and low fares. However deregulation's commerical realities mean't Merseybus - like many former PTE operators, considerably cut service levels and increased fares in order to make and maintain a profit. Furthermore the links Merseyside Transport had forged with former National Bus Company subsidiaries Crosville Motor Services and Ribble Motor Services - which was forcibly split by the government and now known as North Wesrern Road Car Co. Ltd on Merseyside, and Greater Manchester Transport - now GM Buses, to co-ordinate the service network on Merseyside were dismantled with the effect that ultimately all of these companies began competing extensively with each other and Merseybus on Merseyside's most profitable bus routes. In turn Merseytravel - what the PTE had now become known, had to subsidise services which deemed unprofitable for commercial operators like Merseybus but still providing a 'social need'. These were generally numbered in a 100-250 series and a variety of operators including Merseybus, North Western and Crosville won these contracts from Merseytravel.
This in turn with pre-publicity in the run up to deregulation by Merseyside Transport reinforced a generally negative impression of deregulation from bus users on Merseyside which at the time still had fairly low levels of car ownership and income. Perhaps unfairly Merseybus was came in for most criticism for its now higher fares, service cuts and older vehicles. Crosville too suffered in the deregulated era, facing increased competition on the Wirral and perhaps unwise expansion in Liverpool - in the main on Merseytravel contracts, which saw it suffer vehicle shortages and poor industrial relations which eventually saw it pull out of Liverpool due to an indusrial dispute sparked by claims by drivers at the Liverpool depot that second hand Bristol VRs acquired from West Midlands PTE were unsafe. This combined with the 'free for all' nature of the bus market under deregulation opened the door for new entrants - some of which were former employees of Merseyside Transport, to begin gnerally professional operations with lower fares and sometimes higher service levels than those which were being offered by Merseybus.
At the end of 1992 the Merseybus parent company Merseyside Transport Ltd was being perpared for sale by Merseyside PTA. Prior to this "MerseyRider" - see later, was formed to operate Mersytravel contracts and compete with other operators at a lower cost structure - payscales in particular, than those within Merseybus. At the begining of 1993 Merseybus was sold to it's management and employees in a Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP) and in turn Merseyside Transport Ltd became MTL Trust Holdings Ltd and quickly began refocusing the Merseybus operation.
Expansion/acquisitions were a common feature of the MTL era and Merseybus changed quite radically in the years to come. First was the acquisition "Heysham Travel" - see later, perhaps odd in that its Morcambe and Lancaster operations were somewhat distant from those of the MTL parent on Merseyside. Next was the more obvious "Fareway Passenger Services Ltd" - see later, who were belived to be in financial trouble and it considerably strengthend MTL's presence in North Liverpool and Kirkby. A new operation "MTL Manchester" - see later, along with "Lancashire Travel" a re-branding of the opeations at the Merseybus depot in St Helens depot - see later, spaked a controversial 'bus war' with GM Buses in both Greater Manchester and Merseyside which ultimately resulted in all parties engaging in extensive and unprofitable competition and eventually resulted in MTL, GM Buses (North/South) and a number of other bus operators including CMT Buses, Halton Transport and North Western engage into a series of 'gentlemen's agreements' to limit competition within the Merseyside bus market. These agreements were subject to a 1995/96 Monopolies & Mergers Commission study which found these operators guilty of collusion and in breach of fair trade in all the parties involved were fined accordingly. Finally the Merseybus operations in Southport and the Wirral were rebranded "Southport & District" - see later, and "Wirral Peninsula Buses" - see later along with a new 'corporate' livery of mostly cream and crimson base which was brighter than the Merseybus maroon and cream livery it was replacing and the various liveries of the companies MTL had acquired in this period.
Prior to the formation of MTL the Merseybus fleet had aged significantly with the oldest Atlantean's - the mainstays of Merseybus fleet, now approaching 20 years of age or more. MTL therefore made a major effort to update the fleet throughout the 1990's in the form of:
* A deal with London Buses to purchase approximately 250 second-hand Leyland Titan (B15) 'mid-life' double deckers dating from 1978 to 1984 from 1992 to 1994.
* 11 new Optare MetroRider midibuses from 1993 to 1995.
* 12 new Neoplan N4016 intergral low-floor single deckers in 1994 - these vehicles were purchased by Merseytravel and operated by Merseybus on SMART services in Liverpool.
* 3 new Volvo B10B/Alexander Strider single deckers in 1994.
* 120 new Volvo B10B/Wright Endurance single deckers from 1994 to 1996.
* 36 new long-wheelbase Volvo Olympian/Northern Coutnies Palatine II in 1995/96 mainly for use on cross river services between Liverpool and Wirral.
* 38 new Dennis Dart SLF/Plaxton Pointer low-floor midi-sized single deckers from 1995 to 1998.
* 20 new Scania L113/Wright Axcess-Ultralow low-floor single deckers in 1996.
* 22 new Volvo Olympian/Northern Coutnies Palatine II in 1998 for operations based at Gillmoss depot in North Liverpool and branded "The Millennium Fleet".
* 4 new gas-powered Dennis Dart SPD/Plaxton Pointer for use on park and ride services in Southport.
* 75 new Dennis Dart SLF/Marshall Capital in 1999.
Notable competitors for Merseybus
* ABC Travel - acquired by CMT Buses in 1998.
* Amberline - acquired by Crosville Wales 1989 and subsequently acquired by British Bus Ltd/merged into North Western in 1993.
* Arriva North West Ltd/North Western Road Car & Co. Ltd - including associated companies.
* Avon Buses
* Blue Triangle (Bootle)/Liverpool Motor Services/Merseypride Motor Services - see below.
* Busman Buses
* Bussco
* Citybus/Liverpool City Coaches
* City Fleet
* Crosville Motor Services/Potteries Motor Traction (PMT)/Red Rider - acquired by Badgerline in 1992/93. Subsequently became part of FirstBus/First Group plc in 1995.
* CMT Buses
* Express Travel
* Fareway Passenger Services Ltd - see below.
* GM Buses - including (North)/(South) companies.
* Gold Star Buses
* Halton Transport
* Lancashire Rose
* Liverbus - see below.
* Liverline Travel Services Ltd - acquired by North Western in 1993.
* Merseyline Travel
* Mersey Plus
* Nip On Transport
* Ogdens Travel
* On Line Transport
* Rest & Ride
* Village Group Tours - see below.
Merseymaid/Silver Service
Merseymaid and Silver Service were brand names for cross-river double-deck Merseybus/Wirral Peninsula Buses services between Liverpool and the Wirral. Initially Willowbrook-bodied Leyland Atlantean (1847) and five Alexander R-Type Leyland Olympians (0064-0068) which had been based at Liverpool's Green Lane depot were refurbished at the Edge Lane works with soft trim and coach seats in Autumn 1992 and operated on route 411 Eastham - Liverpool. At the end of 1995 this operation was augmented with a batch of 35 Volvo Olympian/Northern Counties Palatine IIs with similar features and used on the other cross-river services. Silver Service quietly faded away around 1998.
Merseymini
Merseymini was a branding exercise for Merseybus's attempt at minibus operation. Merseymini used a fleet of Alexander and Northern Counties-bodied Dodge S75s - including some bought secondhand from GM Buses, and its most notable routes were two Merseytravel contracts and two commercial services. Other services between Huyton, Old Swan and Belle Vale were quickly dropped and the Merseymini name quietly vanished around 1992, when the low-cost MerseyRider unit became more involved with minibus operation.
MerseyRider
MerseyRider began life in the Autumn of 1992 as a low-cost operation set up by Merseybus a few months prior to its sale to its employees and subsequent formation of MTL Trust Holdings Ltd. MerseyRider operated on lower margins and what would prove controversial pay-rates than Merseybus and initially operated out of Liverline's former Blackstock Street depot near Liverpool City Centre after Liverline had moved to a new depot in Bootle. Many of Merseybus's Merseytravel contracts were transferred to MerseyRider as well as Liverline's commercial service 102 (Walton/Broadway - Broadgreen Hospital). At first the fleet included Merseybus's remaining Willowbrook-bodied Leyland Atlanteans and a number of hired minibuses which were replaced at the beginning of 1993 by new K-registration Marshall-bodied Mercedes-Benz 811Ds and a handful of similar G-registration vehicles bodied by Carlyle and bought secondhand from Cambus. These vehicles were painted in a cream and green scheme not to dissimilar to that which Liverpool Corporation/Merseyside Transport had used.
That same year MTL was keen to expand the MerseyRider operation on both marginal services and retain its position in Liverpool's hotly contested bus market. The operation was therefore transferred to the mothballed Shaw Road depot in Speke which Merseybus had vacated in 1989.
A substantial number of Merseybus's East Lancs bodied Leyland Atlanteans were transferred to MerseyRider, appearing at first in a Maroon and Silver variant of Merseybus's maroon livery then a rather more attractive silver and blue scheme until the adoption of MTL 'corporate' cream and crimson livery at the beginning of 1994. Additionally the operations of Blue Triangle were transferred to MerseyRider after MTL acquired that company in the spring of 1994 along with three Alexander Strider-bodied Volvo B10Bs which were part of MTL's initake of new vehicles from 1994 to 1996.
MerseyRider, however, was creating conflict between MTL's management, who were keen to expand the operation further and its employees and the unions, who were concerned about new drivers being on lower pay scales to those within the core Merseybus operation and a bonus scheme based on the takings of each individual driver - a major source of profitability for MTL's competitors. Unions finally called a series of strikes in 1994 and 1995 after the transfer of service 72 (Halewood - Liverpool City Centre) from Merseybus's Garston depot in South Liverpool to MerseyRider, with the effect that with the exception of MTL Fareway and ironically MerseyRider the entire MTL operation was off the road. MTL reconsidered its position and eventually brought the MerseyRider's terms and conditions in line with those of Merseybus, which compromised the profitability of the operation and subsequently it was closed. Some services were transferred to MTL Fareway and in August 1996 the MerseyRider operation ceased when MTL transferred the Garston depot of Merseybus to the Shaw Road depot in Speke.
Lancashire Travel
Between 1988 and 1993 Merseybus began expanding the network of services operated by its St Helens depot. At first these were to nearby Wigan but gradually a network of 'Merseybus' services began to appear in Bolton, Salford and Manchester. GM Buses was already under siege from a number of independent operators in Greater Manchester so the arrival of Merseybus/MTL in what was considered their territory sparked a bus war between the two companies from 1993 to the summer of 1995. MTL launched a two-pronged attack on the Greater Manchester bus market. The first of which consisted of the creation of a new company, MTL Manchester, which had a depot in the Miles Platting area of Manchester and mainly focused on competing with GM Buses (North/South) on city based services in Manchester and satellite towns such as Altrincham, Bury, Sale and Stockport.
The second phase of MTL's move into Greater Manchester was to re-brand the Merseybus services operated by the St Helens depot as Lancashire Travel in the Autumn of 1993. In turn Lancashire Travel expanded on to much of the GM Buses (North) network of both local and interurban services in Bolton, Wigan, Leigh, Salford and North Manchester. To facilitate this the 1989 batch of 25 MCW Metrobus MkIIs were transferred from Merseybus's Gillmoss depot to St Helens along with some early model MkI Metrobuses, again from Gillmoss and a variety of secondhand sources including London Buses, Mainline, Newport Transport and Yorkshire Rider. In addition MTL's first new vehicles, 13 Volvo B10B/Wright Endurances, were delivered to Lancashire Travel in the Spring of 1994. These moves provoked GM Buses (North/South) to begin new services in Liverpool, Southport and the Wirral, the latter of which used a light blue and cream livery - not dissimilar to that of Birkenhead Corporation - and were branded Birkenhead & District.
However the moves by MTL and GM Buses (North/South) into Greater Manchester and Merseyside were highly unprofitable and as such a controversial 'gentlemen's agreement' was signed between MTL and GM Buses North/South in June 1995, which saw MTL pull out of much of Greater Manchester - with the exception of Wigan and Leigh near to Lancashire Travel's St Helens depot and GM Buses North/South from all of Merseyside - including its well established 34 (Liverpool - Manchester Express) and 320 (Liverpool - Wigan) services which severed some important links between the two conurbations. This agreement was subject to a 1995/96 Monopolies & Mergers Commission study which found MTL, GM Buses North/South, North Western and other Merseyside bus operators in collusion and in breach of fair trade resulting in fines for all concerned. By that time GM Buses (South) had been acquired by Stagecoach Holdings plc and re-branded Stagecoach Manchester and GM Buses (North) by FirstBus plc (later FirstGroup plc). Both operators had implemented new ideas for their Greater Manchester operations which didn't include nearby Merseyside. MTL maintained the Lancashire Travel branding for the St Helens depot however MTL North fleetnames were used by St Helens from the Spring of 1998 right up to the acquisition of MTL by Arriva in February 2000.
outhport & District
Southport & District was a re-branding of Merseybus services in the Southport and Formby area, and was part of a general exercise to introduce local branding at MTL in 1994.
Wirral Peninsula Buses
Wirral Peninsula was another of MTL's brand names, introduced in 1994 for services in the Wirral area.
t Helens Rider
St Helens Rider was an earlier branding exercise, introduced in the Summer of 1993 for Merseybus services 33 and 44 in St Helens. These routes were facing large amounts of competition from a number of smaller operations in the town and the St Helens Rider operation was relatively short-lived, being quietly dropped around the time the Lancashire Travel branding was adopted by St Helens depot in Autumn of 1993.
Fareway Passenger Services Ltd/MTL Fareway
Fareway Passenger Services Ltd was Merseyside's first major newcomer to bus operation, post-deregulation and was established by four former Merseyside Transport bus drivers who re-mortgaged their homes and used the redundancy payments they received prior to the formation of Merseybus in 1986. Fareway commenced operations in January 1987 with a fleet of 15-20 ex-Merseyside Transport Bristol VR/East Lancs double-deckers on service F1 between their depot at Hornhouse Lane on the Kirkby Industrial Estate to Liverpool's Pier Head. In turn, Merseybus significantly increased their fare scales and although not at the low levels previously operated by Merseyside Transport, Fareway's fares were significantly lower than Merseybus. Naturally this was very popular with bus users in North Liverpool and Kirkby which at the time had high levels of unemployment and low levels of income and car ownership.
The success of the F1 set the tone for Fareway's expansion with the F1 gaining a 30-minute evening and Sunday operation. The Fareway fleet expanded rapidly with around 40-50 Northern Counties/Park Royal-bodied Daimler and Leyland Fleetlines being acquired from Greater Manchester Transport. The route network was also gradually expanded over the next year.
Merseybus was generally complacent to the competitive threat posed by Fareway and it took a while for it to respond. However with its profitable routes under threat, passenger opinion becoming negative to Merseybus and more favourable to Fareway, it responded with a re-launch of its Kirkby and North Liverpool service network with similar fare levels to those of Fareway, and services which mirrored those of Fareway's and increased frequencies.
Blue Triangle
Based in Bootle, Blue Triangle was formed by a former Merseyside Transport driver David Forrest in the late-1980s. Unlike Fareway, Liverbus and Liverline, who built up substantial commercial operations competing with Merseybus, Blue Triangle initially focused upon Merseytravel contracts with a small fleet of secondhand vehicles. However by 1992 Blue Triangle had begun commercial operations and by the Spring of 1993 the fleet had increased to over 20 vehicles including two new K-registration Plaxton Pointer-bodied Dennis Darts along with an assortment of Alexander AL-bodied Leyland Atlanteans originating with Merseyside Transport and repatriated from the Isle of Man. An irregular 10 Prescot/Page Moss - Liverpool City Centre service was added just before MTL acquired the company in the Spring of 1994. Excluding the Dennis Darts, Blue Triangle's fleet was sold and the operation transferred to MerseyRider's Speke depot.
Liverbus/MTL Liverbus
Originally owned by Gemsam Holdings Ltd, Liverbus was an independent operator set up by former Merseybus employees in January 1990. Initially founded with 30-40 ex-GM Buses Northern Counties/Park Royal-bodied Leyland Atlanteans, Liverbus built up a network of services between its Huyton base and Liverpool city centre competing with Merseybus services from the Gillmoss and Green Lane depots. A private hire/coach excursion operation, Coach 2000, was established in the Summer of 1990, along with two more routes in the Autumn of 1990, both of which bypassed Liverpool city centre, using a fleet of ex-London Buses MCW Metroriders.
Initially Merseybus - unlike the approach it adopted with Fareway and Liverline, didn't over-saturate services competing with Liverbus. With the exception of two short-lived Merseybus services, the two operators appeared to co-exist. By 1993 Liverbus had invested in its first new vehicles, eight Northern Counties Paladin-bodied Volvo B10Bs and a Northern Counties Palatine II-bodied Volvo Olympian, and became involved in three long-term Merseytravel contracts and established a London operation, London Suburban Bus. Liverbus announced a significant order for new vehicles in the shape of a further four Northern Counties Paladin-bodied Volvo B10Bs and two Northern Counties Palatine II-bodied Volvo Olympians which had already been delivered during 1994/95.
MTL began competing with Liverbus in Summer 1995, completely duplicating its entire network and a few weeks later it was soon announced MTL had acquired Gemsam Holdings. Initially the Liverbus white, red and brown livery was maintained but the announced investment didn't materialise and a significant number of ex-MTL Leyland National 2s were transferred to replace the ageing Atlanteans. In 1996 the MTL cream/crimson livery along with a new fleetname, MTL Liverbus, was adopted until the appearance of the MTL North fleetname in 1998. The Huyton depot and route network was maintained until the acquisition of MTL by Arriva in 2000 who after a route revision in the spring of 2000 withdrew many of the former Liverbus routes. Arriva closed down Huyton Depot in June 2006 as it was too small and operations transferred to Green Lane depot in Old Swan.
MTL London
MTL owned two operations in London. These were MTL London Northern and MTL London Suburban.
MTL Manchester
The MTL Manchester operation started in the Summer of 1993 somewhat controversially sparked a 'bus war' with GM Buses, and to a lesser extent North Western's Bee Line operation and the Greater Manchester independents. MTL Manchester eventually operated in most districts of Greater Manchester and the operation was rumoured to be in preparation for a bid for one of the North/South GM Buses companies which had been owned by Greater Manchester PTE and had been ordered to be sold and split by the Government by 1994. In turn GM Buses retaliated in the form of competition with MTL in Liverpool, Southport and the Wirral - using the Birkenhead & District branding in the town. Overall this competition was damaging to both MTL and GM Buses North/South who ultimately were making losses and an even more controversial 'gentlemen's agreement' between MTL, GM Buses North/South in June 1995.
MTL North
MTL North branding first appeared on Lanacashire Travel, Merseybus, MTL Liverbus and MTL Village vehicles from the spring of 1998 and survived until MTL's acquisition by Arriva in February 2000.
Coach operations
Heysham Travel
Heysham Travel was an independent coach operator that was operating commercial bus services in and around Heysham, Lancaster and Morecambe in North Lancashire. After privatisation, MTL was keen to expand and one such opportunity was council-owned Lancaster City Transport (LCT), which was facing stiff competition from Ribble Motor Services (later Stagecoach Lancashire). As a possible lead up to taking over LCT, Heysham Travel was one of MTL's first acquisitions. However, worried about a possible takeover of LCT by MTL, Stagecoach Ribble registered duplicate services over the entire LCT network and by the early summer of 1993 had succeeded in driving LCT out of business and acquiring its asset base. Despite this, MTL retained the Heysham Travel operation, transferring in some Alexander R-Type-bodied MCW Metrobuses, as well as Alexander and East Lancs-bodied Leyland Atlanteans from Merseybus and secondhand Leyland National 2s, ironically purchased from Stagecoach Ribble to replace Heysham Travel's ageing coach fleet. Heysham Travel's Green, Yellow and White livery was also retained up until the late-1990s and this operation was retained by MTL. Being located at least 40-50 miles away from MTL's core operations on Merseyside, the fleet was managed at an arms' length and had few opportunities for expansion. After the acquisition of MTL by Arriva in 2000 the Heysham Travel operation was sold to Stagecoach Ribble in the April of that year.
MTL Village
Village Group Tours was a long-established coach operator based in the Garston Village area of south Liverpool, where the 'Village' name came from. At first they were minor players in Merseyside's bus scene, only appearing on Merseytravel contacts with a handful of ageing double-deckers. However around 1992 Village entered Liverpool's 'bus war' on a large scale, beginning extensive Monday - Saturday daytime operations on two routes between Garston and Liverpool. These south Liverpool routes were popular with students and were already a hotbed of competition between Merseybus, Liverline, North Western, Merseyline and CMT Buses. A new depot in Evans Road in Speke was used to house a fleet which by the end of 1997 had grown to around 60 vehicles, the majority of which were Leyland Titans that were proving popular with Merseybus/MTL and included some rare ex-Greater Manchester examples and B15 prototype NHG732P. Village was acquired by MTL in the spring of 1998 and despite Merseybus's Shaw Road depot in Speke being yards away from Village's, MTL kept the Village depot and ex-London Leyland Titans which fitted in well with their own large fleet of the type. The operation was renamed MTL Village and used the MTL North fleetname from 1998 onwards. Furthermore some ex-MerseyRider/Merseybus services were transferred to MTL Village. When MTL was acquired by Arriva the Evans Road garage was quickly vacated and many of the services rationalised when they revised the MTL service network in April 2000.
* [http://ianstevenson.fotopic.net/c647338.html Photo gallery of various MTL Buses]
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