YW Yorkshire Woollen & Heavy Woollen Transport

West Yorkshire Metro & PTE Era

From 1974, the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive unified bus services across the region, introducing the Metro brand and innovations like the iconic "kerching" Savers Strip tickets.

Formed
1 April 1974
Brand
Metro (1978)
Iconic ticket
Savers Strip
Deregulation
1986

Formation of West Yorkshire PTE (1974)

The West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive was formed on 1 April 1974, following the Local Government Act 1972. This new authority was responsible for planning and coordinating public transport across the five metropolitan districts of West Yorkshire:

Absorption of municipal operators

The PTE inherited operations from several municipal bus operators that had been running services since the tramway era ended in the 1930s:

Heavy Woollen District impact

In the Heavy Woollen District specifically, this meant the end of independent municipal bus operations that had replaced the Yorkshire Woollen District Electric Tramways in 1934. Former tram routes and depots (such as Heckmondwike's Swallow Street depot and Dewsbury's Savile Town depot) were absorbed into the new unified Metro network.

Goals and philosophy

The PTE's mission was to:

This philosophy echoed the original aims of the municipal tram operators from the early 1900s: affordable, integrated public transport serving the working communities of West Yorkshire.

The Metro brand (1978)

In 1978, WYPTE adopted the "Metro" brand to create a unified identity across all its services. This was part of a wider trend of PTEs adopting modern, corporate identities (similar to Tyne & Wear Metro, Greater Manchester's orange buses, etc.).

Visual identity

The Metro brand featured:

This replaced the varied liveries of the former municipal operators, creating a sense of a single, integrated network. For passengers in the Heavy Woollen District, buses that had once been painted in Dewsbury or Batley municipal colors now wore the unified Metro orange and brown.

Service improvements

The Metro era brought several operational improvements:

Metro livery and branding evolution

The visual identity of West Yorkshire's buses has gone through dramatic transformations, reflecting changing ownership, design trends, and the shift from unified public service to competitive commercial operation.

Pre-Metro era: Municipal variety (1934–1974)

Before the PTE was formed, each municipal operator had its own distinctive livery:

This created a patchwork of colors across West Yorkshire, with each town proudly displaying its own identity. Passengers could instantly identify which authority operated a bus just by its color scheme.

1974–1978: The transition years

When WYPTE was formed on 1 April 1974, the inherited buses retained their municipal liveries initially. This created an interim period where the fleet was a mixture of colors, gradually being unified as vehicles were repainted during routine maintenance.

During this transition, buses might carry:

1978: The Metro brand arrives

In 1978, WYPTE launched the Metro brand with a completely new visual identity designed to create a unified, modern image for West Yorkshire public transport.

The iconic Metro livery

Colors

The Metro livery featured a distinctive three-color scheme:

  • Orange: The dominant color, covering most of the bus body
  • Brown: Used as a contrasting band and for skirt panels
  • Cream/Off-white: For roof areas and window surrounds

The orange was vibrant and eye-catching, chosen to be visible in traffic and immediately recognizable. The brown provided earthy contrast, while the cream lifted the overall appearance.

The Metro "M" symbol

The Metro logo featured a bold, geometric "M" in a square format, often displayed prominently on the front and sides of buses. The wordmark used a clean, modern sans-serif typeface that reflected the design trends of the late 1970s.

The branding extended beyond buses to:

  • Bus stops and shelters
  • Timetable booklets
  • Publicity materials
  • Staff uniforms
  • Bus station signage

Application variations

While the basic color scheme was consistent, there were variations over the years:

1986: Deregulation and fragmentation

The Transport Act 1986 marked the beginning of the end for the unified Metro livery. As bus operations were split into competing companies and routes were opened to private operators, the orange and brown began to disappear.

What happened to the Metro colors?

By the early 1990s, the once-unified orange and brown Metro network had become a patchwork of competing liveries again, similar to the pre-1974 municipal era but with commercial branding rather than civic pride.

1990s–2000s: The corporate era

As bus companies consolidated through acquisitions, standardized corporate liveries appeared:

These corporate liveries were applied nationally, meaning West Yorkshire buses looked identical to those in Kent, Scotland, or Wales. The regional identity that Metro had created was lost.

2010s–2020s: Route branding and partial return

In recent years, some operators have experimented with:

The Metro brand endures (sort of)

Although Metro no longer operates buses, the Metro brand has remained the public face of transport information in West Yorkshire. Bus stops, timetables, journey planners, and the MCard system all carry Metro branding. For many passengers, "Metro" still means "public transport in West Yorkshire" even though they're actually traveling on Arriva, First, or other commercial operators.

2025: Enter the Weaver Network

With the introduction of the Weaver Network brand in 2025, West Yorkshire is once again moving toward a unified visual identity, this time featuring:

As franchising brings bus services back under public control from 2027, buses in West Yorkshire will once again wear a unified livery—fifty years after the Metro orange and brown was first introduced.

Iconic bus types in Metro livery

Certain bus models became synonymous with the Metro brand due to their widespread use during the peak Metro era:

Leyland Atlantean

The Leyland Atlantean double-decker was the workhorse of the Metro fleet. With its distinctive front-engine layout and Alexander or Park Royal bodywork, hundreds of Atlanteans wore the orange and brown livery across West Yorkshire throughout the 1970s and 1980s.

MCW Metrobus

The MCW Metrobus was another common sight, particularly in the 1980s. Its modern styling suited the Metro brand perfectly, and many passengers remember the Metrobus as the quintessential Metro bus.

Leyland National

For single-deck routes, the Leyland National was ubiquitous. Its distinctive boxy styling and "pod" front end became iconic in Metro orange. The National was loved and loathed in equal measure—reliable but noisy, practical but uncomfortable.

Dennis Dominator

Later in the Metro era, the Dennis Dominator joined the fleet, offering a more modern alternative to the aging Atlanteans. These buses often represented the final wave of Metro-liveried vehicles before privatization.

Do you have photos?

If you have photographs of buses in Metro livery—especially at Heavy Woollen District locations like Dewsbury Bus Station, Heckmondwike town center, or Batley—please consider sharing them to help preserve this visual history.

Summary: Livery timeline

Period Livery/branding Characteristics
1934–1974 Municipal variety Each town had its own colors (maroon, red, blue + cream)
1974–1978 Transition Mix of old municipal liveries with WYPTE fleetnames
1978–1986 Metro orange & brown Unified, iconic livery with "M" logo; peak of integration
1986–1998 Fragmentation Multiple operators, multiple liveries (red/cream, various)
1998–2025 Corporate brands Arriva turquoise, First pink, Stagecoach stripes, etc.
2025+ Weaver Network green Return to unified identity under franchising

The West Yorkshire Savers Strip

The Savers Strip was a pre-paid bus ticket system introduced by Metro in the early 1980s. It represents a key moment in the region's public transport history, marking a move towards encouraging more passengers and speeding up boarding times.

Design and use

The strip

The ticket was a perforated paper strip containing a set number of journeys, typically 10. Each strip was color-coded by zone or fare stage, with different colors representing different journey types (adult, child, student, etc.).

Strips could be purchased from:

  • Bus station travel shops
  • Post offices
  • Selected newsagents
  • Directly from bus drivers (though this defeated the time-saving purpose)

The "kerching" machine

When a passenger boarded the bus, they fed the strip into a special validation machine mounted near the driver. The machine would:

  1. Pull the strip through
  2. Punch or stamp a single journey segment
  3. Make a distinctive mechanical "kerching" sound
  4. Return the strip to the passenger

This sound became an iconic memory for many residents and is still fondly remembered today.

Why Savers Strips?

The introduction of Savers Strips addressed several operational challenges:

Mid-1980s: Popularity and cultural status

The Savers Strip quickly became a fixture of daily life in West Yorkshire. Common experiences included:

Do you remember the "kerching"?

If you have memories of using Savers Strips in the 1980s, or if you have photographs or actual ticket strips in your collection, please get in touch! These personal stories help preserve the social history of public transport in West Yorkshire.

Late 1980s–Early 1990s: Transition and decline

By the late 1980s, the Savers Strip system was showing its age compared to newer technologies emerging elsewhere in the UK and Europe.

Metro began introducing more modern ticketing systems, including:

As new types of pre-paid passes, smartcards, and eventually electronic ticketing became available, the paper Saver Strips were gradually phased out during the early 1990s. The distinctive "kerching" sound faded into memory, replaced by the electronic beeps of modern ticket machines.

Deregulation (1986)

The Transport Act 1986 fundamentally changed the landscape of bus operations in Britain outside London. From October 1986, bus services were deregulated, allowing private operators to compete freely on routes previously controlled by PTEs and municipal operators.

The context: Declining patronage

The years leading up to deregulation saw significant challenges for public transport in West Yorkshire. Between the mid-1970s and mid-1980s, the region experienced a 36.4% decline in public transport patronage, reflecting national trends of rising car ownership and changing travel patterns.

The government argued that deregulation and competition would:

Impact on West Yorkshire

Deregulation brought significant changes:

End of the PTE operating role

Under deregulation, PTEs could no longer operate bus services directly. Metro's bus operations were restructured into arm's-length companies that had to compete commercially. The PTE itself became primarily a planning, information, and infrastructure body, responsible for:

The Metro brand continued (and still continues today) as the public face of West Yorkshire public transport information, but the era of a unified, publicly-operated bus network had ended.

The Fastaway experiment (1986–1987)

In the wake of deregulation, operators across Britain experimented with new service concepts to compete in the newly liberalized market. One of the most memorable local examples was West Riding's "Fastaway" brand—a short-lived attempt at premium limited-stop services.

Background: The West Riding Automobile Company

The West Riding Automobile Company (WRAC) was a major operator in West Yorkshire, based in Wakefield. It had a long and proud history:

West Riding's operating area included significant coverage of the Heavy Woollen District, particularly around Wakefield and the Spen Valley, making it a key operator for routes connecting Dewsbury, Batley, Heckmondwike, and Cleckheaton.

October 1986: Deregulation and the Fastaway response

When bus deregulation took effect in October 1986, operators were suddenly free to run commercial services without needing regulatory approval. West Riding saw this as an opportunity to establish a new premium service that could compete with both traditional bus routes and private car use.

The Fastaway concept

Fastaway was designed as a network of limited-stop express services:

The distinctive livery

West Riding quickly repainted selected coaches into a new Fastaway livery on deregulation. The livery featured:

The Leyland Tiger/Plaxton Paramount combination gave Fastaway a premium, coach-like feel—very different from the standard Metro buses on parallel routes.

Route network

The exact Fastaway routes are no longer comprehensively documented, but based on West Riding's operating area and the nature of limited-stop services, they likely included:

These routes were concentrated in West Riding's core operating area and would have directly competed with the all-stop Metro services operating on the same corridors.

Reception and rapid decline

Despite the investment in vehicles and branding, Fastaway struggled from the start:

By 1987—just months after launch—it was clear the Fastaway experiment had failed. The concept was quickly abandoned by West Riding.

What happened to the Fastaway vehicles?

Absorption into Caldaire Holdings

In 1987, both West Riding and the former Yorkshire Woollen District operations were sold to Caldaire Holdings, a private bus group. The companies traded as:

The Fastaway-liveried coaches were either:

Transfer to United

On 2 December 1987, Caldaire Holdings purchased United Automobile Services, a major operator based in the North East. As part of fleet rationalization, many of the former Fastaway vehicles were transferred to United, where they were:

This meant that coaches originally purchased for Heavy Woollen District express services ended up working hundreds of miles away in North East England.

Later ownership changes

West Riding itself continued through several more ownership changes:

Legacy and lessons

The Fastaway experiment represents a fascinating moment in the post-deregulation era:

Do you remember Fastaway?

If you traveled on Fastaway services, worked for West Riding during this period, or have photographs of the Fastaway-liveried coaches, your memories would be invaluable. This brief experiment is now largely forgotten, but it represents an important part of the Heavy Woollen District's transport history during the turbulent post-deregulation years.

Connection to Heavy Woollen District

While Fastaway was a West Riding initiative based in Wakefield, it directly affected the Heavy Woollen District:

Fastaway's failure was symptomatic of the challenges facing bus operators in the late 1980s and early 1990s, as the industry adjusted to deregulation and declining passenger numbers. It stands as a cautionary tale of the risks of launching premium services in a price-sensitive market.

2025: From Metro to Weaver Network

On 7 May 2025 it was announced that the 'Metro' brand would be phased out as the region transitions to a franchising model for bus services. On 12 May 2025, the new branding was unveiled under the name Weaver Network.

The name and inspiration

The Weaver Network name is inspired by the region's industrial past and visually reflects the cultural fabric of modern-day West Yorkshire. The name emerged from extensive work to explore the region's cultural identity, including the involvement of poet laureate and West Yorkshire resident Simon Armitage.

The name was chosen for the region's shared industrial heritage surrounding the production of textiles, and likely to emulate the success of the Bee Network, the equivalent transport authority within Greater Manchester.

Simon Armitage on the name

Simon Armitage, national Poet Laureate and West Yorkshire resident, said: "I was pleased and proud to be part of a conversation about the naming of the future transport network – I'm West Yorkshire born and bred, a public transport user, a geography graduate and a poet – in many ways it was the perfect invitation. To me, The Weaver Network name symbolises the threads connecting people with places, shuttling to and fro, built on heritage and creating new ties and links."

Visual identity and livery

The W symbol and the distinctive green livery inspired by textiles and sculpture across West Yorkshire will adorn the region's buses and trams as well as potentially hire bikes and trains in future. Art on the side of the bus that was unveiled on Monday features nod to Burberry, Harris Tweed, Henry Moore and the region's nature.

The branding is inspired by local artists from David Hockney to Barbara Hepworth, reflecting West Yorkshire's rich cultural heritage alongside its textile industry past.

Why rebrand?

The decision to retire the Metro brand came as West Yorkshire moves towards a franchising model for bus services, bringing them back under public control. Research found that someone in West Yorkshire looking to plan a journey could be faced with around 50 brand identities - with the Combined Authority running or having involvement in 19 of those. To move people onto more sustainable travel options, the need to simplify became clear.

Key reasons for the rebrand include:

Rollout timeline

The new brand was officially unveiled by Mayor Tracy Brabin and West Yorkshire's five council leaders at Millennium Square in Leeds on Monday 12 May 2025.

The plan is to minimise the cost by rolling out the new brand on a repair and replace basis. This means that as infrastructure is repaired, replaced, upgraded and invested in, the new branding will be applied. This helps minimise costs, but it does mean there will be a period when multiple brands are in the public domain.

The phased rollout includes:

Connection to textile heritage

The Weaver Network name creates a powerful link back to the Heavy Woollen District's industrial heritage. The region earned its "Heavy Woollen" name from its historic role in producing heavy woollen cloth and blankets, with mills across Dewsbury, Batley, Heckmondwike, Cleckheaton, and surrounding towns.

This means that West Yorkshire's public transport network has come full circle:

The name "Weaver" not only honors the past but also symbolizes the network's purpose: weaving together West Yorkshire's communities through integrated public transport.

End of an era

The Metro brand was created in 1974, and the organisation's roles and responsibilities have changed immeasurably since then. After 51 years, the Metro brand will gradually fade from view, but its legacy as the face of West Yorkshire public transport for half a century will be remembered alongside the Savers Strip "kerching" and the distinctive orange and brown livery.

Legacy

While the Savers Strip is no longer in use, it is remembered with a sense of nostalgia. It is frequently mentioned in online communities and social media posts, with many reminiscing about:

The Savers Strip remains a powerful reminder of the Metro brand's history and an era before contactless payments, Oyster-style smartcards, and mobile ticketing changed public transport forever. For those who grew up in West Yorkshire in the 1980s, the "kerching" is as evocative a sound as the bell of a tram would have been to an earlier generation.

Evolution of ticketing

The journey from Savers Strips to modern ticketing:

Each generation of technology brought improvements in convenience and speed, but none quite captured the public imagination like the distinctive "kerching" of the Savers Strip machine.

Connection to Yorkshire Woollen heritage

While the Savers Strip era came decades after the Yorkshire Woollen District Electric Tramways closed in 1934, there are direct continuities that connect the PTE era back to the tramway heritage:

Routes and corridors

Many Metro bus routes in the Heavy Woollen District followed the same corridors as the old tram routes:

The infrastructure of public transport — the main roads, the population centers, the journey patterns — remained remarkably consistent from the tram era through to the Metro era and beyond.

Depots

Some former tram depots continued in use as bus garages under Metro ownership:

These depots represent over a century of continuous public transport operations, linking the electric tram era directly to modern bus services.

Service philosophy

The PTE's goal of integrated, affordable public transport echoed the original municipal tram operators' aims from the 1900s–1930s. Both eras shared a vision of:

The Metro era (1974–1986) can be seen as a brief return to this integrated, public-service ethos after the commercial pressures of the NBC period — before deregulation once again fragmented the network.

Further reading

Explore related pages:

  • Timeline — Full chronology from 1898 to present
  • Tramways — The Yorkshire Woollen District Electric Tramways era (1903–1934)
  • Depots — Savile Town, Swallow Street, and other operational bases
  • Buses — Motor bus operations from 1935 onwards
  • Company history — The full lineage from Y(WD)ET to Arriva
  • Iconic buses — The Leyland National and other memorable vehicles