Western National - Privatisation

Privatisation

In 1980 the new Thatcher government embarked on a programme of deregulation and privatisation of bus services. In 1983 the National Bus Company divided Western National into four companies: Southern National Ltd in Somerset and Dorset; Devon General Ltd in the old Devon General's area in south and east Devon; North Devon Ltd trading as Red Bus in North Devon; and Western National Ltd in Cornwall and Plymouth.

In August 1986 Devon General became the first NBC subsidiary to be sold to its management, who sold it on to Stagecoach as Stagecoach in Devon in 1995.

Western National Ltd was acquired by Badgerline by 1993, and therefore became part of First Bus, later First Group, formed when Badgerline merged with Grampian Regional Transport. First changed the company's name to First Western National.

Southern National and North Devon were jointly sold to their management in 1988. In 1999 they were sold to First Group. First split Southern National into two: the Dorset operations became part of First Hampshire & Dorset, and the Somerset operations part of First Somerset & Avon. The North Devon operations were combined with those of First Western National to form First Devon and Cornwall.

Therefore today almost all of the operations of the original Western National and Southern National companies are part of First Group. The only exceptions are the old Gloucestershire area, now part of Stagecoach, and the small Swanage depot, now part of the Go Ahead Group's Wilts & Dorset.