Go North East Chester-le-Street depot goes up for sale for £1.95m

The Go North East depot in Chester-le-Street closed for the final time in September last year after serving County Durham for more than 100 years.

The depot, which was first opened back in 1912 and the company's first, employed more than 170 drivers and staff while dozens of routes were based there.

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But now the site on Picktree Lane has gone up for sale with a sale listing noting that the buildings will be demolished prior to the sale.

The Chester-le-Street bus depot on Picktree Lane has gone up for sale. (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)

The 2.1 acre site has gone on the market welcoming offers in excess of £1.95m.

The Northern Echo has contacted Go North East for a comment.

No planning permission has yet been submitted to Durham County Council for the site.

Last year the bus operator confirmed the closure of the depot after the Echo revealed rumours among its workforce that it would shut.

At the time, the firm blamed the "financial challenges" brought on by the pandemic, changes to the economy and a recent pay claim from the union.

But the news did not go down well and the firm suffered immense backlash from its workers, politicians, businesses in the town and residents.

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As a result, drivers and the Unite union clubbed together to campaign to keep it open, threatening strike action unless the firm reversed its decision - or compensated drivers.

File photo dated March 2022. (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)

In August a compensatory package of £2,250 to existing drivers and a severance package for those nearing retirement was approved.

At the time a spokesperson said: “As has been reported in the local media, our Chester-le-Street depot will sadly close from September with all routes relocating to other depots.

“This is following our recent service changes, adapting to reduced use of bus services in some areas following changes to the way people work, shop and socialise.

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“The change also helps us manage the impact of rising costs and protects vital local services for customers who rely on public transport, recognising that it’s crucial to continue to offer a bus network that delivers for customers as the cost of driving becomes more expensive.

“"We understand how attached colleagues are to the depot and to each other, however, we are a substantially smaller business now following the pandemic.

“We must therefore downsize the number of depots across the company, and reduce our overheads, to recover from our current loss-making position – this change is a major part of that recovery plan.”