CATCHING a bus today? Then you might be helping promote the Poppy Appeal.

Arriva North East and Yorkshire are supporting the Poppy Appeal again this year with 12 specially-designed ‘Poppy Buses’ hitting the road to mark Remembrance Day.

Each depot in the North East and Yorkshire area will have its own ‘Poppy Bus’ and they will be out and about from today until Monday, November 13.

These buses will operate on popular Arriva routes and will act as a mark of respect for the sacrifices made by service men and women both past and present.

The special buses feature giant poppies and dedicated artwork supporting The Royal British Legion, on the outside and inside of the bus. These custom vehicles have been created with the support of Logoshack and Exterion Media.

The company will also be transporting service men and women to Remembrance events across the region.

Today, soldiers from Catterick Garrison were transported to Leeds Poppy Day by Arriva Yorkshire and Arriva North East will perform a similar service for soldiers to an event in Stockton on November 7.

Danielle Neighbour, Community Fundraising Manager for the Royal British Legion said: "We are incredibly grateful to Arriva for their support of this year’s Poppy Appeal and the parades they have agreed to transport soldiers too. The Royal British Legion’s vital work is entirely dependent on the public’s generous support to help anyone currently serving in the British Armed Forces, veterans, and their families.

"The Legion uses your donations in so many ways including providing crisis grants, offering the children of Armed Forces personnel adventure breaks, researching the impact of blast injuries on the body, lobbying the government on key issues, and advising on benefits and money problems."

Nigel Featham, regional managing director for Arriva North East and Yorkshire said: “We are proud to be supporting The Royal British Legion and helping commemorate the fallen heroes and those who currently serve. We hope the Poppy Buses will once again be popular with our customers and prove to be a fitting tribute to the Armed Force Community and we would like to encourage our customers to help support this cause.”

Over the course of the two weeks, Arriva’s twelve ‘Poppy Buses’ will cover more than 42,000 miles.

  • The Northern Echo will be printing a full list of Remembrance services and parades on Wednesday, November 8. If you want to see your event listed email newmedia@nne.co.uk detailing town, day, time and location.