Carousel Buses Limited,[2]trading asCarousel Buses, is a bus company based in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. Originally an independent company, it is a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group. It is grouped together with Oxford Bus Company and Thames Travel, both of Oxfordshire, and with Pulham's Coaches of Gloucestershire, with the fleets of each operator regularly interchanged.
In August 2003 route A40 High Wycombe to Heathrow Airport commenced, initially using second-hand Leyland Olympian double-deckers.[4] By April 2004 these had been replaced by new low-floor Mercedes-Benz Citaro single-deck buses, in a dedicated silver and red livery.[5] The route, which ran in partnership with Buckinghamshire County Council and Heathrow Airport Holdings, was formally introduced in January 2004.[6]
The company launched a new commercial route in June 2004, replacing services withdrawn by Arriva The Shires between High Wycombe and Lane End.[7]
In March 2008 Carousel introduced routes 35 and 36, branded as Purple Route, to replace a withdrawn Arriva Shires & Essex service to Flackwell Heath.[8] The 35 was temporarily withdrawn in January 2010 because of road conditions, but was later restored. Arriva Shires & Essex currently run a combined 35 service with Carousel, with Carousel operating all daytime services, and Arriva operating evening and Sunday journeys. [9] In October 2008 the majority of services to Winchmore Hill were withdrawn, leaving the village with just one bus a day.[10]
In August 2009 route 336, which had previously run between Watford and Amersham, was extended to High Wycombe reinstating a through link for the first time in 30 years. The network of routes linking Chesham and Amersham, numbered 373, 374 and 375, were rationalised into two routes, the 71 and 73, running hourly between the two locations. These routes have since changed to Red Rose Travel, linking Whelpley Hill and Ley Hill to Hilltop, Chesham Broadway, Chesham Bois, Amersham Station, Quill Hall Estate, Little Chalfont, Penn Street, Coleshill and Winchmore Hill, where Carousel no longer serves. [11]
In September 2009 two new routes were introduced, route 740 supplemented the A40 between High Wycombe and Uxbridge, increasing the overall frequency to every 30 minutes and incorporating Beaconsfield, and route 730 from Chesham to Heathrow Airport.[12]
A further change saw the existing route to Lane End replaced by new circular routes 2A and 2C in April 2010. These are no longer Carousel services[13]
In March 2012 Carousel Buses was purchased by the Go-Ahead Group. Carousel retains its identity, with its management passing to the group's Oxford Bus Company operation.[14] Go-Ahead had previously operated services in the High Wycombe area under the Wycombe Bus name, but sold this operation to Arriva in December 2000.[15][16]
On 3 June 2018, their 'Link' network became the 'Chiltern Hundreds'. (102 runs from High Wycombe to Uxbridge/Heathrow Airport, 103 runs from High Wycombe to Slough, 104 runs from High Wycombe to Uxbridge via Seer Green and the Chalfonts and 106/107 runs from Amersham to Slough.)
As of 25 July 2022 Carousel Buses have cut the Watford part of the 103 and cut the 103 back to Wycombe and Chesham with the reason being low passenger usage and in September is set to be extended to Slough with Chesham being cut. The Watford part has been replaced by Arriva's 336 Watford to Amersham and 335 Watford to Chorleywood.
Carousel also cut 105 Chesham to Uxbridge by extending 106/7 to Amersham with the reason being the same as 103. Route 40 also passed to Red Rose Travel with the same reason as 105 and 103.
However route 102 has been extended back to London Heathrow and 101 has been reinstated after being suspended during Covid 19
As of September 2022, Carousels routes 35 and 36 have transferred to Arriva. With school route 39A being fully terminated due to lack of use. While carousel takes over the Route 1/1A/1B entirely.
Carousel have also started a "PickMeUp" service, operating similar to Uber and funded in part by Buckinghamshire County Council.
As of 8 January 2023, the route 41 from Great Missenden railway station to High Wycombe bus station was transferred to Carousel [17] from Arriva Beds & Bucks (operating under Arriva Shires & Essex), the route was later extended to Amersham.[18] In August 2023, the 103 route was extended from Slough to Windsor as well as taking over route 275 between High Wycombe and Oxford from Red Rose.[19]
In May 2024 Arriva proposed the closure of their Aylesbury & High Wycombe depots, with Carousel Buses saying they would take over any withdrawn services.[20]
1 / 1A / 1B / 1C / 1S: High Wycombe to Chesham Pond Park (1A/1B) - Chartridge (1C) Hemel Hempstead (1)
27: Pheasant Drive to Olympic Way
30: High Wycombe to Downley
31 / 31S: High Wycombe to Penn / Bourne End
32 / 32A: Booker to Micklefield
33: Totteridge to Castlefield
34: High Wycombe to Lane End
36 / 36S: High Wycombe to Bourne End
37 / 37A / 37B / 37S: High Wycombe to Bourne End/Maidenhead
38: High Wycombe to Deeds Grove & Shelley Road
39 / 39A: High Wycombe to Hicks Farm Rise
41 / 41H / 41S: High Wycombe to Great Missenden & Amersham
102: High Wycombe to Heathrow Airport via Beaconsfield, Gerrards X & Uxbridge
103 / X103: High Wycombe to Slough & Windsor - X103 Sundays only to Slough
104: High Wycombe to Uxbridge via Beaconsfield, The Chalfonts, Gerrards X & Denham
106 / 107: Amersham to Slough via The Chalfonts, Gerrards X, Fulmer (107), Windsor Road (106) Stoke Poges (107), Wexham Street (106), Wexham Park Hospital and Knolton Way Estate
275: Chinnor to Oxford City Centre (First & Last bus start/finish at Wycombe)
577: Hazlemere to Beaconsfield (Peak Hours only)
581: Higher Denham to Uxbridge
583: Hedgerley/Slough/Langley Harrow to Uxbridge
850: High Wycombe to Central Reading
School & Private Services
5: Desborough Avenue to Sir William Ramsay School
607: Slough to Chalfonts Community College
BB12: Gerrards Cross to Marlow Hill Schools
Wycombe Wanderers WW1: High Wycombe to Adams Park Stadium (for home games)
SS1: High Wycombe to Westwood (private service)
SS2: Twyford to Bigshotte Park (private service)
SS3: Maidenhead to Booker (private service)
Former Routes
35 - High Wycombe Bus Station, Wycombe Marsh, Flackwell Heath
36B - Same route as the 36, 36B was extended to serve Wooburn Moor
40 - High Wycombe Bus Station, West Wycombe, Piddington, Stokenchurch, Chinnor, Thame
103 - High Wycombe, Beaconsfield, Amersham, Little Chalfont, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Coxley, Watford
105 - Chesham, Amersham, The Chalfonts, Gerrards X, Denham, Uxbridge
580 - High Wycombe Bus Station (first and last bus only), Beaconsfield, Jordans Village (Tuesday and Fridays only), The Chalfonts, Gerrards Cross, Tatling End, Denham, Uxbridge
582 - (Saturdays Only) - Wyatts Covert Caravan Site, Denham Garden Village, Denham Station, Denham Village, Iver Heath, Slough, Windsor
730 - same as the 105, but extended to Hemel Hempstead after Chesham
A30 - The predecessor of the 730, ran same route of the 105 from Chesham to Uxbridge, but went onto Heathrow CBS
740- Wycombe, Beaconsfield New Town, Crowne Plaza, Gerrards Cross, Denham, Uxbridge, Heathrow CBS (Peak Hours)
A40 - Wycombe, Beaconsfield Old Town, Crowne Plaza, Gerrards Cross, Denham, Uxbridge, Heathrow CBS
