Countryliner

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Countryliner was a bus and coach operator based in Uckfield, East Sussex, England. It ran more than 50 bus services, mainly in Sussex and Kent, with some work into Hampshire. In October 2012 the company went into administration and its remaining services were operated under the SwiftBus brand until they ceased trading on 18 January 2013.

Origins and growth
- The business lineage goes back to 1911 with the East Surrey Traction Company in Reigate, later becoming part of Green Line and then part of London Transport. The Green Line private hire arm was renamed Countryliner in 1992.
- In August 1998, Arriva sold Countryliner in a management buyout. The company then expanded into broader bus operations.
- Countryliner Sussex was created in 2006 to take over the RDH Services bus operation in East Sussex, and Countryliner Buses was formed to run the Hickstead operations. By the late 2000s the group had around 80 vehicles operating across Surrey, Hampshire and Sussex, and it secured contracts such as Petersfield Town Services for Hampshire.

Financial trouble and restructuring
- From 2009 the group faced financial difficulties. Merchant Corporate Recovery invested, and several winding-up petitions were issued, though most debts were eventually resolved.
- Surrey’s network underwent changes in 2010–2011 as part of a county bus review. Some routes were withdrawn or moved to other operators, while a few services became more commercial.
- In 2011 there were maintenance and licensing challenges. Some licenses were revoked or suspended, and the company began a process of concentrating operations under fewer licenses.
- By 2012 the Surrey contracts had been terminated or reassigned, and the Sussex operation faced significant disruption.

Administration and dissolution
- On 8 October 2012, Countryliner Sussex entered administration. Other parts of the business continued briefly under different arrangements, but operations in Surrey and Hampshire were taken over by other operators.
- The remaining Countryliner business was rebranded as SwiftBus (RJB UK Limited), with some vehicles swapped between operators. On 18 January 2013, SwiftBus also went into administration, and its remaining routes were handed to other operators (including Velvet, Stagecoach, and local services on temporary contracts).

Fleet
- The fleet featured a mix of Dennis Darts and Plaxton-bodied buses, with coaches including Mercedes-Benz minibuses. The group also added MAN/MCV Evolution buses and some second-hand units in the 2000s and early 2010s.

In summary, Countryliner grew from historic Green Line roots into a mid-sized Sussex/Kent/Hampshire operator, but a series of financial and contractual challenges led to administration in 2012 and the end of its operations in early 2013.