Preston Corporation Tramways began operation of electric trams in June
1904, and they exclusively served the town until 1922. Additional tram
routes to Frenchwood and Fulwood had been mooted several times, but the
latter had been rejected on a number of occasions due to the narrowness
of some of the highways on the proposed route. Consequently, the route
to Fulwood was inaugurated on 23 January 1922, using motorbuses. The
trams were abandoned between 1932 and 1935 when the six routes were
converted to motorbus operation. Before the Second World War additional
bus routes were started to serve new housing developments. Post-war
routes were commenced to serve further new housing at Brookfield, Ingol,
Larches, Lea, Moor Nook and Ribbleton. A Joint Operating Agreement was
entered into with Ribble Motors (and Scout Motors) on 1 January 1948.
There were initially four routes involved, with three more being added
over the next twenty-five years. This agreement continued in diminished
form until deregulation in 1986, following which the route network
rapidly expanded. In more recent times, following the brief tenure by
Stagecoach, Rotala Preston Bus has also operated a diverse number of
services on behalf of Lancashire County Council, which over recent years
has involved routes to many of the surrounding Lancashire towns.
