A NORTH-EAST bus company has made more than 40 redundancies, The Northern Echo can reveal.

Classic Coaches, in Annfield Plain, near Stanley, County Durham, has closed its depot.

The company, which is part of the Arriva group, says 42 full-time and part-time workers have been made redundant.

Bosses added 11 drivers and four further employees have moved to positions within Arriva.

Classic also operated school services, which Arriva added have been switched to other travel operators in the region.

An Arriva spokesman said: “We can confirm that Classic Coaches unfortunately closed on Tuesday, September 30.

“We have worked closely with the trade union to make what has been difficult process as smooth as possible.

“We were able to offer the majority of employees other jobs within Arriva, and a number of drivers and some engineers have taken that option to transfer while some employees have chosen to take redundancy.

“Classic Coaches also operated a number of school contracts and where these have been transferred to other bus operators, staff have transferred along with them.”

The company was known for running a number of day trips, including services to Skipton, in North Yorkshire, Castle Howard, near York, and excursions to see Blackpool’s illuminations.

Classic operated as a part of the TGM Group, which is a company within Arriva, and is known for its services at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted airports.