Yanson Group of Bus Companies

History

The company was founded in 1968 by Ricardo B. Yanson (passed away on Sunday, October 25, 2015) and his wife, Olivia Villaflores Yanson, beginning with the purchase of one jeepney unit. This effort ultimately became a jeepney-assembly business. In the early 1970s, the market was flooded with Ford Fieras; the couple decided to diversify into a small bus line which plied the Bacolod City-Valladolid-La Carlota route (hence, ValLaCar) and christened it as Ceres Liner, named after Ricardo's youngest sister.

Below are the following milestones of Yanson Group of bus Companies:

Today, the corporation presides over a transportation business with around 1,000 buses serving the islands of Negros, Panay, Cebu, Bohol, Samar-Leyte, Mindanao, and Batangas City.

Subsidiaries

These are the subsidiary companies under the Yanson Group of Bus Companies as of 2016:

Vallacar Transit Incorporated

Started in 1968, Vallacar Transit Incorporated is the first subsidiary of the Yanson Group of Bus Companies. It started with Ceres Liner which is named after the founder's younger sister. By 1980, Ceres Liner was covering the whole province of Negros.

In 2007, Ceres Liner's Iloilo base pioneered travel between Iloilo City and Metro Manila through the Western Nautical Highway. Proving to be profitable, Yanson Group expanded its Metro Manila operations and later established Ceres Transport in 2009.

In 2016, Ceres Liner bought around 70 bus franchises from D' Rough Riders Express. It then formed a new brand as Sugbo Transit which is named after the old name of Cebu, Sugbo. Currently, the said branding is under the management of Ceres Liner's Cebu Base.

Rural Transit of Mindanao Incorporated / Bachelor Express Incorporated

In 1981, the Yansons ventured to Mindanao. They bought out Fortune Express and Bachelor Express, both Cagayan de Oro-based bus companies in 1985, and formed Rural Transit of Mindanao. However, the formation of Rural Transit was divided from Bachelor Express when the former owners of Bachelor and Yanson Group agreed to retain the name Bachelor Express as one of the conditions of the contract of sale. Bachelor Express was then named as Bachelor Express Inc.

In 2005, they bought out Lilian Express Inc. and sister company Mary May Express, its fiercest business rival, and became the dominant transit company in the island of Mindanao. This expanded their operations to the whole Western Mindanao, making Rural Transit as the predominant transport operator in the Mindanao Region.

Ceres Transport Incorporated

In 2007, Ceres Liner's Iloilo base pioneered travel between Iloilo City and Metro Manila through the Western Nautical Highway. Proving to be profitable, Yanson Group expanded its Metro Manila operations and established Ceres Transport in 2009, being based in Batangas City. It enabled bus services encompassing Cubao, Batangas City, Mindoro, Aklan, Antique and Iloilo

Southern Star Bus Transit Incorporated

In 2011, the conglomerate bought out St. Jude Transportation Company, a bus line based in Bohol, and renamed it Southern Star.^[1][2] Primarily, it was operated under the management of Vallacar Transit Incorporated. Later on, Southern Star formed its own subsidiary as Southern Star Bus Transit Incorporated.

Gold Star Bus Transit Incorporated

In 2012, Ceres Transport Inc., bought out a franchise of Gold Star Bus Company and allowed it to operate its Batangas-Cubao and Batangas-Alabang routes. Later on, Yanson Group decided to create on its own subsidiary as Gold Star Bus Transit Incorporated, making it apart from the Ceres Transport Inc.

Mindanao Star Bus Transport Incorporated

Mindanao Star started in January 2015 when Bachelor Express bought out Weena Express and sister company People's Transport Corporation. It then formed a new subsidiary as Mindanao Star Bus Transport Incorporated, making them apart from the management of Bachelor Express. It opened opportunity for Yanson Group to serve the Davao City - Cotabato City route, which they cannot penetrate for decades.

In October 2015 Mindanao Star bought Holiday Bus, the bus line of Davao Holiday Transport Services Inc., It made them to expand their operations for Davao City - General Santos City, and General Santos City - Koronadal City route.

Vallacar Transit Incorporated - Transport Engineering and Bus Body Assembly Plant (VTI-TEBBAP)

Vallacar Transit Incorporated - Transport Engineering and Bus Body Assembly Plant (VTI-TEBBAP) is the coach-building division of Yanson Group. They serve to refurbish Yanson's buses, and even to redevelop new units for their operations.

Ceres Pasalubong

Ceres Pasalubong is a producer of pasalubong products and fresh pastries. It is part of the EY Group of Companies which is owned by Emily Yanson. It offers a wide range of cakes, breads and local pastries produced in Negros.

Ceres La-Salle F.C.

Ceres La-Salle F.C. commonly referred to as Ceres Football Club, is a Filipino professional football club based in the city of Bacolod, Negros Occidental that plays in the United Football League, the highest level of Philippine club football. The club is a member of the Negros Occidental Football Association, and was originally named Ceres – Negros Football Club.

The name Ceres came from the Ceres Liner bus line owned by brothers Ricky and Leo Rey Yanson and operated by Vallacar Transit Inc., the largest public land transportation company in the Negros Region of the Philippines. La Salle came from the club's close ties with the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod City. The club's home ground is the Panaad Park and Stadium in Bacolod City.^[1]

Ceres had their first major success in the United Football League in the 2014 season, when they won the United Football League Division 2 Championship, earning them promotion to the first division. Since then, they have won the UFL FA League Cup and the United Football League Division 1 Championship.

Bases

Their subsidiaries are sub-divided by bases. These are based on their area of their operation, and their base number shall be the prefix number for their bus fleets. This practice was started in 2005 after they bought out Lilian Express Inc., and felt that re-organizing their company is needed.

Fleets

Majority of VTI's coaches are built by its coach-building division, the VTI Transport Engineering and Bus Body Assembly Plant (VTI-TEBBAP), in Barangay Mansilingan, Bacolod City.^[2]

Some units are also built by other local bus body builders like Pilipinas Hino, Almazora Motors, and Santarosa Philippines; as well as foreign coach builders like King Long, Golden Dragon, Higer and Yutong of China.

Examples of VTI's current own-built models are Viking, Crius, Legacy and Contessa.

Yanson ViKing

ViKing which is short for Vallacar-King Long was a shared engineering design from King Long and VTI-TEBBAP to develop and re-

engineer one of King Long's buses, the King Long XMQ6126Y. At the development of the design, the 3rd Generation made up the closest to the said model even to the interior looks and designs. The development then continued with upgraded reclining seats, 5 flat-screen TVs, Dashboard Cameras, WiFi equipped, and LED Signboard.

Yanson ViKing buses can be found in all bus subsidiaries of Yanson Group except for Southern Star Bus Transport Inc.

Yanson Legacy

Legacy started with the prototype of DongFeng DHZ6120Y. The first of its kind was the Ceres Tours 55003 which became the flagship of all Yanson Group buses. Although it was made from DongFeng, Yanson Group brought it to VTI-TEBBAP for special remodifications. It was installed with brand new reclining seats, 3 flat-screen TVs and equipped with WiFi.

In the development of the design, they soon produced another prototype for GAC-Hino SFQ6123 with one unit which then the Ceres Tours 55006. Same to Ceres Tours 55003, it was upgraded with brand new reclining seats, 3 flat-screen TVs and equipped with WiFi.

In 2013, VTI-TEBBAP decided to have a standardized Legacy model with reclining seats same to King Long's, 5 flat-screen TVs, and WiFi equipped.

Yanson Legacy were deployed to Vallacar Transit Inc., Rural Transit of Mindanao Inc., Bachelor Express Inc., and Mindanao Star Bus Transport Inc.,

King Long Units

Yanson Group Started to order King Long units from China in 2008. They are deployed for Vallacar Transit Inc., Rural Transit of Mindanao Inc., Bachelor Express Inc., Mindanao Star Bus Transport Inc., and Ceres Transport Inc.

Yutong Units

Yanson Group Started to order Yutong units from China in 2010. It was then the second Chinese-brand buses to order after King Long. They are deployed for Vallacar Transit Inc., Rural Transit of Mindanao Inc., Bachelor Express Inc., Mindanao Star Bus Transport Inc., Southern Star Bus Transport Inc., Gold Star Bus Transport Inc., and Ceres Transport Inc.

Higer Units

In 2015, they experimented to order other bus brands like Higer. It ended up by ordering 8 buses for Vallacar Transit Inc., and Bachelor Express Inc.

Golden Dragon and Replica Units

Yanson Group has no plans for Golden Dragon for their fleets. Eventually, after they bought out Weena Express and CCJRC Liner which having several Golden Dragon fleets, they decided to use them as their add-on buses. They are used for Mindanao Star Bus Transport Inc., which is the later name of Weena Express following the acquisition.

Guilin-Daewoo

Like Golden Dragon, Yanson Group never thought of having Guilin-Daewoo buses to add on their fleets. Eventually, Weena Express, a bus that they bought in 2015 has these. Thus, it add up to their fleet after the sell-out

Former fleets

Before they engaged to Chinese buses, these are their predominant fleets:

Crius

There are two variant of Crius buses which are made by VTI-TEBBAP: the Crius RK which is made with Hino RK chassis, and the Crius FF1J which is made with Hino FF chassis. Both are made for longer routes with high demand of passengers. They have a seating capacity of 61 passengers plus 20 standing passengers. They are deployed for Vallacar Transit Inc., Rural Transit of Mindanao Inc., Bachelor Express Inc., and Southern Star Bus Transport Inc.,

M9

M9 is an ordinary fare bus made by VTI-TEBBAP which is made with chassis from Nissan Diesel Buses. However, in 2014 they stop the production of M9 buses, while the existing ones are converted into shuttle buses for employees. Before their conversion, they were deployed for Vallacar Transit Inc., Rural Transit of Mindanao Inc., and Bachelor Express Inc.,

Contessa and FB4J

The Contessa and the FB4J are both mini-buses made for YGBC's shorter routes. They are deployed for Vallacar Transit Inc., Rural Transit of Mindanao Inc., Bachelor Express Inc., and Southern Star Bus Transport Inc.,

Hino RK Cat's Eye

The iconic Hino Cat's Eye buses of Plipinas Hino Inc., were made its replica by VTI-TEBBAP for Yanson Group of Companies. The production of these started since 2001, and ended in 2007. Though the production of these ordinary fare buses ended, there are still a few of these running for Rural Transit of Mindanao Inc., serving the routes for Dipolog City - Zamboanga City, with upgraded kits, improved head-lights and the signboard placed to the top from the usual placement of it at its dashboard, along the passenger side.

King Long

With the increasing demand for ordinary fare buses, Yanson Group decided to order King Long ordinary buses in 2012. They were initially assigned for Vallacar Transit Inc., and later deployed for Rural Transit of Mindanao Inc., and Bachelor Express Inc.

Yutong

After King Long, Yanson group ordered at least 20 Yutong ordinary fare buses for Bachelor Express Inc and Rural Transit Mindanao Inc.

Dongfeng

There are around 2 Dongfeng Coasters that is used for Bachelor Express Inc.

BAR Replicas

BAR or the Bataan Automotive Remanufacturing Corporation's GD XML6103 Replica was the primary ordinary fare buses for Weena Express. However, following the acquisition in 2015, Yanson Group adopted their fleets and used it for the later. Mindanao Star Bus Transport Inc.

Other units

These are the ordinary fare buses that is being used from the company long before there was Crius, M9, Contessa and FB4J:

Company Logo

On their introduction during the 80's, the company has no formal logo that is used to their business. But just for their representation of their company, they were presented by their business name in such, "Ceres Liner", "Bachelor Express" and "Rural Transit", written in a font similar to Bitsumishi.

In 2000, the company used a fox logo for Ceres Liner and Rural Transit and an eagle logo for Bachelor Express. The font was changed as to similar with Copperplate Font.

In 2008, following the introduction of Ceres Transport, a new logo for Ceres Transport was introduced. Then in 2015, following the introduction of Mindanao Star, a new logo for Mindanao Star was introduced. In 2016, they introduced Sugbo Transit with its own logo as well.

Due to their continuous expansion which brought up to a lot of logos, in 2013, the company uses one generic logo which will serve as Yanson Group's corporate identity. The logo serves as the emblem of their buses that is manufactured from VTI-TEBBAP. However, the logos made by their subsidiaries will continue to be used as for their representation. They also used a font similar to Cavalero Roman BT.