AN independent transport firm that has served Derwentside for 46 years has sold its bus operation to Go North-East for an undisclosed sum.

Stanley Taxis, which runs four routes, including the MC1 and MC2 to Newcastle and the MetroCentre, plans to concentrate on its growing private hire and charter coach business.

The company's buses and 22 drivers will transfer to the Go North-East depot in the town.

All services will become Easy Access and Go North-East will guarantee wheelchair users a taxi at no additional cost if a wheelchair-accessible bus is not available.

The Go North-East X67 Newcastle Express service, which uses the new CentreLink busway to avoid traffic congestion, will be extended to Stanley.

Stanley Taxis owner Andrew Scott said: "We have taken the Stanley Buses division as far as we can, and in order for it to progress onto the next stage of development, it will take a significant amount of investment.

"We see a great future in the excursion and private hire part of the coach business and want to concentrate on growing this.

"We are proud of what we have achieved in local services over the years, particularly with our commercial MC1 and MC2 routes, but local bus services are a very challenging market, with lots of uncertainty and very little opportunity for growth.

"We have worked closely with Go North-East in developing new connections and through ticketing and believe that the time is right to fully integrate our services into the network, giving our passengers the benefits of network ticketing and improved services that only a larger operator could offer."

Go North-East managing director Peter Huntley said: "We had a tentative approach from Stanley Taxis, who were considering the future of their service bus division, and we were more than happy to talk to them.

"Stanley Taxis have a reputation as a quality, well-run operation and we feel this fits ideally with our vision for the future.

"We are investing heavily in improving our trunk routes in this area, linking Stanley and Consett with Newcastle, Durham, Chester-le-Street, Washington and Sunderland."