Harman Patil (Editor)

Arriva Sapphire

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Parent
  
Arriva

Service type
  
Luxury bus

Founded
  
April 2013

Routes
  
29 (February 2017)

Arriva Sapphire

Slogan
  
Making everyday journeys sparkle

Fleet
  
Alexander Dennis Enviro400 Wright Pulsar/Pulsar 2 Wright StreetLite

Arriva Sapphire is a premium brand used by various Arriva bus subsidiaries in the United Kingdom.

Contents

History

In February 2013, Arriva announced it would be launching a premium service under the Sapphire brand for its bus services in the United Kingdom. It is similar to the Stagecoach Gold brand launched by Stagecoach in 2007.

The brand was rolled out initially on four pilot routes:

  • Arriva Buses Wales' route 1 Wrexham to Chester
  • Arriva Midlands' route 31/31a Oadby to Leicester
  • Arriva Shires & Essex's route 280 Aylesbury to Oxford
  • Arriva North East's route 7 Darlington to Durham
  • In 2014, the brand was rolled out on a further 11 routes with another six scheduled for conversion in late-2015.

    In 2015, the Sapphire brand was shortlisted for an award for exemplary commitment to customer excellence at the International Association of Public Transport World Congress & Exhibition.

    Routes

    As at February 2017 there were 29 Arriva Sapphire routes.

    Arriva Buses Wales

  • 1 - Wrexham to Chester
  • 10/10A - Chester to Connah's Quay and Holywell
  • 12 - Rhyl to Llandudno
  • Arriva Midlands

  • 1/2/2E - Huntington to Walsall
  • 31/31A - Oadby to Leicester
  • 38 - Stenson Fields to Derby
  • 110 - Tamworth to Birmingham
  • X3 - Leicester to Market Harborough
  • Arriva North East

  • 3/4/X3/X3A/X4 - Whitby, Loftus and Lingdale to Middlesbrough
  • 5/5A - Easington to Middlesbrough
  • 6 - Durham to Bishop Auckland and Cockfield
  • 7 - Darlington to Durham
  • 22 - Durham to Sunderland
  • 24/24X - Durham to Hartlepool
  • X21/X22 - Ashington to Newcastle-upon-Tyne
  • Arriva North West

  • 38 - Crewe to Macclesfield
  • 130 - Manchester to Macclesfield
  • 263 - Manchester to Altrincham
  • 362 - Chorley to Wigan
  • 575 - Wigan to Bolton
  • X1 - Liverpool to Windmill Hill
  • Arriva Shires & Essex

  • 6 - Lakes Estate to Wolverton
  • 100/101/102 - Stevenage to Luton
  • 280/X8 - Aylesbury to Oxford
  • 320 - Hemel Hempstead to Rickmansworth
  • 321 - Watford to Luton
  • Arriva Southern Counties

  • 101 - Gillingham to Maidstone
  • 480/490 - Dartford to Valley Drive
  • Arriva Yorkshire

  • 110 - Hall Green to Leeds
  • Vehicles

    Buses have leather seats, free WiFi, power points and a modified two tone blue livery. The initial pilot routes commenced with a mix of refurbished double deck buses and new Wright Pulsar bodied VDL SB200s. Mostly since then new buses have been purchased, primarily Alexander Dennis Enviro400s and Wright StreetLites. A number of Wright Pulsar/Pulsar 2 vehicles have been refurbished to operate Sapphire routes.

    References

    Arriva Sapphire Wikipedia