Greyhound to start bus services in UK

Greyhound Bus

FirstGroup, Britain’s largest bus and train operator, and owner of the Greyhound coach brand in the U.S., said the buses would start running from London, Victoria, to Portsmouth and Southampton on September 14.

Tickets will cost as little as a £1, with the average journey costing £7. It plans to roll out more routes next year. The hourly bus service will take just under two hours non-stop and will offer free Wi-Fi, power sockets for each passenger, air conditioning, complimentary newspapers and leather seats.

Each bus will be named after women from popular American songs including Peggy Sue, Billy Jean, and Barbara Ann.

FirstGroup, which acquired Greyhound’s parent company Laidlaw two years ago in a £1.9bn deal, is hoping to compete with rivals by offering greater comfort and by keeping costs low. Each coach has 40 seats rather than the usual 50 and most bookings will be over the Internet.