Bournemouth's Yellow Buses goes into administration

Yellow Buses said its 300 employees had been paid on Friday

A 120-year-old bus company that employs 300 people has gone into administration.

Bournemouth Transport Ltd, which serves Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole under the name Yellow Buses, blamed the pandemic and fuel price rises.

It said staff had been paid this month and funding had been secured to meet ongoing salary and supply payments.

Administrators at Milsted Langdon said the firm was close to agreeing a takeover by a national provider.

'Support staff'

In a statement, Simon Rowe and Rachel Hotham of Milsted Langdon said: "Yellow Buses has suffered from the challenges of the Covid period and the changes in lifestyle habits which have followed, with more people working remotely and some people still being reluctant to travel on public transport.

"All of this has severely reduced passenger numbers on all routes.

"This loss of revenue has had a financial impact on the business and additional factors, such as the recent increase in fuel prices and the general rise in inflation, have only made that greater."

They said the directors had been seeking a buyer "for some time" and negotiations were in the "final stages".

The statement added: "Support Yellow Buses and, crucially, its staff by using the bus. Let the drivers know they have your support."