Arriva North East

In 1986, as part of the privatisation of the National Bus Company, United Automobile Services was split in two. Operations north of the River Tyne were sold in a management buyout to Proudmutual, with the company becoming Northumbria Motor Services. In 1994, it was then sold to British Bus.

Operations in County Durham and North Yorkshire were sold to Caldaire Holdings in a management buyout. In September 1992, the company was subsequently sold to Westcourt Bus Group, followed by National Express.

In 1995, West Auckland-based Eden Bus Company was purchased by North East Bus. The depot was subsequently closed, with operations being moved to Bishop Auckland depot. The name was later purchased by Graeme Scarlett, who now operates a small fleet in and around Bishop Auckland, with vehicles branded in a red and ivory livery.

Following the Cowie Group purchasing British Bus in August 1996, both were once again under common ownership, although North East Bus and Northumbria Motor Services continued to operate as separate entities. In November 1997, Cowie Group was rebranded as Arriva, consolidating 140 sub-brands under one name. Operations in the region were subsequently integrated, with common fleet numbering and management.

In March 2006, Go North East announced the withdrawal of services in Bishop Auckland, with remaining services transferred to their Chester-le-Street depot. Operations, which had previously been taken over from OK Travel by Go-Ahead Northern in March 1995, were transferred to Arriva. The former depot has since been demolished. In the same month, Richmond depot was closed, with staff and operations transferred to Darlington. Most North Yorkshire County Council-supported services, along with some of the depot's former staff, were taken on by Dales & District.

In May 2007, it was announced that the company would take over Stagecoach's operations in Darlington, pending approval by the Office of Fair Trading. Following the takeover, services, as well as 28 vehicles and 78 drivers (with no changes to pay or conditions) were transferred, with vehicles subsequently repainted. In March 2008, operations moved to a new depot at Faverdale Industrial Estate, Darlington.

The Loftus depot was closed in January 2009, after over 80 years of continuous operation, with the subsequent loss of 20 jobs. Operations, along with in the region of 60 staff, were transferred between Redcar, Stockton-on-Tees and Whitby depots.

In March 2010, Go North East's Ashington depot was exchanged with Arriva's Hexham depot.

Fleet and operations

Depots

As of September 2024, the company operate from seven depots across the region: Ashington, Blyth, Darlington (Faverdale), Durham (Belmont), Redcar, Stockton-on-Tees and Whitby.

Vehicles

The fleet consists mainly of diesel-powered single and double-deck buses manufactured by Alexander Dennis and Wrightbus.

Branding

As of April 2022, vehicles in the fleet are in the process of being rebranded into the new fleet livery, which was introduced to the region in January 2018. It consists of an all-round aquamarine base with white diagonal stripe, featuring the company's updated logo. The former livery was introduced over twenty years prior, and consisted of vehicles painted in an aquamarine base, with a cream semi-circle at the front, and yellow stripe along the side of the vehicle. It was later revised, with a dark blue skirt incorporated into the livery.

MAX was designed for interurban express services, such as Ashington-based services X15 and X18, which run between Newcastle upon Tyne, Alnwick and Berwick-upon-Tweed via Morpeth, and Darlington-based services X75 and X76, which run between Darlington and Barnard Castle. At the point of introduction, vehicles were branded in a two-tone blue livery, featuring leather seats, free WiFi and USB charging points.