Oxford Bus Company – response to closure of Arriva High Wycombe and Aylesbury

Oxford Bus Company is saddened by the news that Arriva has begun consultation on the proposed closure of its depots at Aylesbury and High Wycombe.

We are pleased to announce that we will be stepping in to assist Arriva customers with the launch of a new 280 service between Oxford, Headington, Wheatley and Thame. This service will operate every 30 minutes and will commence operation from 1st July 2024. The timetable for the new service will be posted here as soon as possible.

In addition, our sister company Carousel Buses will be stepping in to provide replacement services on routes in the High Wycombe area. Carousel is taking over route 4 from 19th May 2024, and has also announced that it provide replacement services on current Arriva routes 2, 3, 5/5a, 6/6a, 7/7a, 10, 11, 12, 13, 800, 850 and X80, from the date of the closure.

Luke Marion, Oxford Bus Company and Carousel Buses Managing Director, said: “We understand that local people may well be worried that the bus services they rely on across Wycombe, South Bucks and Oxfordshire may be affected by this news – but they need not be concerned.

I can reassure them that Oxford Bus Company and Carousel are ready to step in, to ensure bus users can still get to where they need to go. We will be working hard over the coming months to plan the new services.”

Oxford Bus Company’s parent company, Go-Ahead, is no stranger to saving the day when services have been withdrawn by fellow operators. In 2022, another of its companies, Morebus, worked tirelessly to ensure people in Bournemouth and Poole continued to enjoy comprehensive bus services - following the collapse of Bournemouth Transport Ltd (Yellow Buses). And in February 2023, the team at another Go-Ahead company, Bluestar, stepped in to replace the First Bus network in Southampton, when that operator chose to withdraw from the city.