DalesBus

DalesBus is a bus network serving the Yorkshire Dales and managed by Dales and Bowland Community Interest Company, a volunteer-run subsidiary of the Yorkshire Dales Society.^[1]

DalesBus

Headquarters	Gargrave, North Yorkshire
Service area	Cumbria Lancashire North Yorkshire West Yorkshire
Service type	Bus and coach
Website	www.dalesbus.org

Services are funded by organisations, including the National Trust, West Yorkshire Metro, Yorkshire Dales National Park, and community groups. Over 30,000 passengers used the network in 2019/20.^[1]

Some services only operate at weekends and on bank holidays, from Easter until late October, though others are year-round.^[2]

The DalesBus Ramblers organise a programme of guided walks in the Yorkshire Dales.^[3]

History

The service began in 2007 with a single route between Ilkley and Skipton.^[4]

Controversy

In 2015, North Yorkshire County Council withdrew English National Concessionary Travel Scheme payments for some of these services, regarding them as only for "tourist use" and therefore outside of statutory provision.^[5] In the following year, Lancashire County Council made the decision to follow suit, citing similar reasons to do so.^[6]

Services and operators

As of 2025, the following services are operated under the DalesBus brand.^[7]

Operator	Service(s)
Dales & District	138, 138A, 139, 144, 159 & 856
East Yorkshire	822
Transdev Blazefield	24, 59, 72, 74, 820, 821, 825, 864, 866, 873, 875 & 884
Kirkby Lonsdale Coach Hire	75, 81, 82, 580, 581, 583, 830 & 881
Little White Bus	30, 113 Garsdale Station Shuttle & 156
North Yorkshire County Council	11, 72A, 155 & 210
Upper Wharfedale Venturer	72B
Western Dales Community Bus	S1, S3, S4, S5 & S6
York Pullman	874

In popular culture

In 2016, route 830's commentary free journey through Swaledale, was an episode of television series BBC Four Goes Slow entitled All Aboard! The Country Bus.^[8] The episode saw a series record audience of 800,000.^[9]