An Independent Partnership: G&B Motor Services

County Durham had an abundance of small, family-run bus companies. This is the story of two of those companies which came together to run a reliable service for nearly fifty years. Coal mining dominated life in much of the county and this provided an opportunity for entrepreneurs provide cheap and fast travel between the villages and the nearest towns, as well as giving secure employment opportunities well away from the grim alternative underground. It covers the buses and also the people working behind the scenes whose decisions had long-lasting consequences, and the drivers and conductors who were the friendly face of the service. Read about races between stationary buses, making one good bus out of two (or even three), the annual Big Meeting Day, over-lively driving and traffic court battles. This immersive history follows every step from the have-a-go competitive early days of the 1920s, through the more respectable decades, to, finally, the passing away of family members and sale of the companies.