page_title: Julian Peddle
section_title: Milton Keynes and Status Group
hierarchical_section_title: Julian Peddle / Milton Keynes and Status Group
caption_attribution_description: English: An MK Metro bus at Showbus 2004
context_page_description: Julian Peddle is an entrepreneur who has worked in the bus industry since the early 1980s, having owned or part-owned numerous bus companies. He spent 11 years as co-owner of Stevensons of Uttoxeter between 1983 and 1994, having previously been its traffic manager. During the late 1990s and early 2000s he ran Status Group, a group of small bus companies spread across England which included BakerBus, Choice Travel and MK Metro. He was a major shareholder in Tellings-Golden Miller and Centrebus Holdings before their sale to Arriva.
  Peddle is currently a shareholder in Centrebus, D&G Bus, High Peak Buses, Select Bus and Midland Classic.
context_section_description: In 1997, Peddle took over two former Cambus depots at Huntingdon and Milton Keynes. These had been acquired along with the rest of Cambus by Stagecoach in 1995, but the Office of Fair Trading had instructed Stagecoach to sell two depots to reduce its dominance in the region. They also stipulated that both depots must be sold to the same buyer. Peddle proved to be the only interested party and duly took over the operation in June 1997. The operations were quickly rebranded as MK Metro in Milton Keynes and Premier Buses in Huntingdon. However, Peddle was unable to fund new vehicles for both, and sold Premier to Blazefield Holdings in 1998.
  MK Metro was owned by Peddle for nine years, during which time passenger numbers increased by 120% and the company became profitable. Between 1998 and 2003 alone ridership rose by 63% following the introduction of new buses and ticketing schemes. However, Peddle ultimately sold the company to Arriva Shires & Essex in 2006, citing disagreement between authorities as a major factor.
  Following Stevensons' sale Peddle had set up a company called Metropolitan Omnibus to run on many former Stevensons routes in the West Midlands. In 1997 Metropolitan was taken over by Choice Travel, who Peddle bought a small share in. He also bought minority shares in BakerBus and Burnley-based Border Buses. All three of these companies joined Peddle's Status Bus & Coach on its formation in 1999, as did TGM and their subsidiaries Classic Coaches and Burton's, MK Metro and coach company The Londoners. The aim was to reduce costs by buying vehicles and supplies in bulk at cheaper costs while retaining local control. Few others agreed that this was practical and the group broke up, selling BakerBus to its management, Border Buses to Northern Blue and closing The Londoners altogether.
  In 2005 Choice Travel's managing director Tom Young wanted to retire, and with no obvious successor in the company it was decided to sell the company to independent D&G Bus, based in nearby Adderley Green. However, in 2006 Peddle purchased a minority stake in D&G following the death of its co-founder Gerald Henderson. around the same time Peddle also bought a 30% stake in South Lancs Travel. Peddle's shareholding in South Lancs Travel was sold to Rotala in 2015. In December 2019, Peddle purchased the remaining 74% in D&G Bus.
caption: MK Metro Caetano Nimbus bodied Dennis Dart in September 2004
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