Review 2009: EYMS takeover Veolia's Hull operation

March 2009 saw the withdrawal of Veolia from the region as their Hull operation was transferred to EYMS. This was part of a wider withdrawal from smaller operations by Veolia that has also seen their Lincoln depot closed and their York operation sold to Transdev (who are now in merger talks with Veolia, so Veolia may get York back!).

Veolia inherited the Hull operation when they took over Dunn Line, who had in turn bought Alpha Bus and Coach earlier in the decade. The main service was the operation of the Walton Street Park and Ride, but Hull City Council stopped funding the scheme in the Spring, which would have left the Hull operation with very little work. Other than that Veolia had various tendered services across Hull and East Yorkshire, some operating only a few days a week, others only a few journeys a day. Only the Hessle Town Service could be described as a regular Monday to Saturday operation, and even that only ran in the morning and early afternoon.

EYMS integrated the former Veolia work into their network, along with the former Veolia Hull fleet, which has led to some 'oddballs' within EYMS's fleet such as a MAN 14:220 HOCL/East Lancs Mylennium single decker. In a separate move, they also took on the Walton Street Park and Ride commercially.

Veolia's departure from Hull meant that apart from EYMS and Stagecoach only local independent operators remain in Hull, and until Lords Coaches took over Saturday services 173-5 in September, only EYMS and Stagecoach operated any local bus services in Hull. However in 2010 CT Plus (Hackney Community Transport) will set up a new Hull operation, which while not part of a large group like Veolia, are not an independent either.