VERNEY

TRANSPORTS VERNEY

Including a selection of the operating companies timetables from 1969

Y compris une sélection des horaires des sociétés exploitantes pour 1969

Nota - Il s'agit d'un site d'archives historiques et ne contient pas les données actuelles

The Transports Verney / Tourisme Verney group had its headquarters in Le Mans, and there were a dozen or more operating subsidiaries, mainly in the west of France. The origins of the group lay with country tramways. In 1885 the Beldant-Baert company were responsible for lines in Sarthe with further concessions obtained in other départements over the ensuing years. Other lines were developed by the Verney-Dequaindry company. Overall there was a network of some 2,000 kilometres of 'chemins de fer départementaux et locaux'.

After the First War the country tramways were becoming progressively outdated, and after half a century their operation was increasingly uneconomic. Motor bus services were developed and offered competition. After marriage Louis Verney became Francois Baert's son-in-law, subsequently his business partner, and eventually his successor. Progressively the two previously named companies started to work together and on the suggestion of Louis Verney eventually merged to form SCF (Société Centrale de Chemins et d'Entreprises) in 1927; thus bringing together the business interests of Messieurs Baert and Verney. It brought together operating concessions for réseaux secondaires in different départments, some of which dated from the last years of the 19th century. Public transport in country areas by these secondary railways and tramways was reasonably comprehensive but slow, and when improved motor buses came on the scene the time was ripe to take advantage of this viable rubber-tyred alternative means of transport.

Thus SCF formed their first bus company in 1933, STAO - Société des Transports Automobiles de l'Ouest, with a network of routes based on Le Mans (Réseau du Sarthe). There were originally nine routes, several crossing into other departments, extending to Angers in Maine-et-Loire, Alencon in Orne, Tours in Indre-et-Loire and Laval in Mayenne. Departments that would develop their own STAO bus networks. Also three routes based on Alencon (in the department of Orne) started at the same time, two towards Mamers and one to Le Mans.

STAO expanded during the 1930s and 1940s to form other networks (réseaux) in Orne, Poitou, Touraine, Mayenne (in part by acquisition of Les Courriers de la Mayenne of Laval, with that trading name retained until the late 1960s before being renamed STAO) and Seine Inférieure / Eure. For many years the headquarters of the Verney group were based in the rue Paul Beldant at Le Mans, remembering the name of one of the founders.

Other companies within the Verney group were STN - Société des Transports de Normandie in the département of Manche, previously Chemins de Fer Normands; Compagnie Ardennaise de Transports, centred on Charleville near the Belgian border; STABE - Société des Transports Automobiles de la Région de Belfort et Environs, near the Swiss border; CAT - Compagnie Armoricaine de Transports, based on Saint Brieuc in Côtes-du-Nord département (a long established company with origins dating back to the secondary rail lines from 1891, joining the Verney group in 1962); CTF - Compagnie des Transports du Finistère, operating from Brest in Bretagne, and subsequently merged with the adjoining CAT company by 1969; Compagnie des Transports du Morbihan, based in Vannes (starting with local rail lines in 1892 as the Compagnie des Chemins de Fer du Morbihan, in which the Verney group was always associated until they took a majority share in the company in 1968 and renamed it 'Transports' in succession to the previous 'Chemins de Fer'; TIV - Compagnie de Transports d'Ille-et-Vilaine, based in Rennes and acquired in 1967.

The various timetables, route lists and maps set out below serve to recall the operations of the ten Verney companies in the west of France as they were in 1969.

The Verney group manufactured many of the buses and autorails used on their bus routes and rail lines, autorails being built from 1922 and buses from 1934. Under the direction of Francois Verney bodies were built on Panhard, Renault and Citroen chassis; these were followed by a rear-engined Citroen which took to the road in May 1940. In 1956 the manufacturing activities were renamed Société des Automobiles et Matériels Verney, then formed into a separate company CBM Car et Bus le Mans from 1977. CBM ceased all bus production in 1986 having strayed from their traditional rural and interurban bus market into the building of urban buses, a competitive market in which it was difficult to persuade established operators to change to a new supplier. Their legacy was the model 220B which was continued by Renault as the R212, and then later from 1989 by Heuliez as their model GX77H. Now a parts supplier, CBM restyled itself as Car et Bus Maintenance.

By the year 1977 the then six Verney operating subsidiaries were running some nineteen hundred vehicles between them. In the same year the Verney group became associated with the Michelin group, which latter by then controlled Transports Citroen. In Sarthe, 1983 saw the first agreement signed by STAO with the département for the operation of the departmental network of bus routes. 1985 saw the group introducing travel agencies to support their activities and using the 'Tourisme Verney' name. In 1990 the group regained its independence and came again under the control of the Verney family, retaining the many routes of the former Transports Citroen (founded in 1931 by the manufacturer as a means of establishing a market for their own buses and coaches). In turn Verney was acquired by the Connex group in 2002. This involved 2700 buses and coaches and 3300 staff, with operations principally in the Pays de la Loire, Bretagne and Normandie but also in Rhône-Alpes, the Paris region and Alsace. In November 2005, Connex changed its name to Veolia Transport.

Transports Verney / Tourisme Verney avait son siège social au Mans, et il y avait une dizaine de filiales en exploitation, principalement dans l'ouest de la France. Les origines du groupe étaient les tramways au paysage. En 1885, la société Beldant-Baert était responsable pour lignes dans la Sarthe, avec des nouvelles concessions obtenues dans les autres départements au cours des années qui suivirent. D'autres lignes ont été développés par la société Verney-Dequaindry. Dans l'ensemble il y avait un réseau de quelque 2.000 kilomètres de chemins de fer départementaux et locaux.

Après la Première Guerre les tramways ruraux devenaient progressivement obsolètes, et après un demi-siècle leur fonctionnement étaient de plus en plus moins rentable. Des services des autobus ont été développés en concurrence. Après son mariage Louis Verney est devenu le fils-frère François Baert, par la suite son partenaire d'affaires, et finalement son successeur. Progressivement les deux sociétés précédemment nommés ont commencé à travailler ensemble et sur la suggestion de Louis Verney ont finalement fusionné pour former la SCF (Société Centrale de Chemins et d'Entreprises) en 1927; réunissant ainsi les intérêts commerciaux de MM Baert et Verney. Il a réuni des concessions d'exploitation des réseaux secondaires dans différents départements, dont certains datent des années dernières du 19ème siècle. Les transports publics dans la campagne par ces chemins de fer et tramways secondaires était raisonnablement complet mais lent, et quand les autobus améliorés arrivent sur la scène le temps était venu de prendre avantage de cette alternative viable de transport à pneus.

Ainsi SCF ont formé leur première compagnie des autobus en 1933, la STAO - Société des Transports Automobiles de l'Ouest, avec un réseau de lignes au départ du Mans (Réseau du Sarthe). Il y avait initialement neuf routes, plusieurs traversant dans d'autres départements, s'étendant à Angers dans le Maine-et-Loire, Alençon dans l'Orne, Tours en Indre-et-Loire et à Laval en Mayenne. Les départements qui developpaient leurs propres réseaux de bus STAO. Aussi trois itinéraires basés sur Alençon (dans le département de l'Orne) a commencé au même moment, deux vers Mamers et un au Mans.

STAO élargait au cours des années 1930 et 1940 pour former d'autres réseaux dans l'Orne, le Poitou, la Touraine, la Mayenne (par l'acquisition des Courriers de la Mayenne de Laval, avec ce nom commercial retenu jusqu'au les années 1960 avant d'être rebaptisé STAO) et aussi la Seine Inférieure / Eure. Pendant de nombreuses années le siège du groupe Verney étaient dans la rue Paul Beldant au Mans, rappelant le nom d'un des fondateurs.

D'autres sociétés au sein du groupe Verney étaient la STN - Société des Transports de Normandie dans le département de la Manche, auparavant Chemins de Fer Normands; Compagnie Ardennaise de Transports, centrée sur Charleville près de la frontière belge; STABE - Société des Transports Automobiles de la Région de Belfort et Environs, près de la frontière suisse; CAT - Compagnie Armoricaine de Transports, basé sur Saint Brieuc dans les Côtes-du-Nord (une entreprise établie de longue date dont les origines remontent aux lignes ferroviaires secondaires à partir de 1891, et rejoint le groupe Verney en 1962) ; CTF - la Compagnie des Transports du Finistère, centre d'exploitation Brest en Bretagne, et par la suite fusionné avec la société CAT avant 1969; la Compagnie des Transports du Morbihan, basé à Vannes (a commencé par les lignes ferroviaires locales en 1892 que la Compagnie des Chemins de Fer de du Morbihan, dans laquelle le groupe Verney a toujours été associée jusqu'à ce qu'ils ont pris une part majoritaire dans la société en 1968 et l'a rebaptisée "Transports" en succession à la "Chemins de Fer"précédente; TIV - Compagnie de Transports d'Ille-et-Vilaine, établie à Rennes et acquise en 1967.

Les livrets-horaires différents, les répertoires des lignes et les cartes ci-dessous servent à rappeler les opérations des dix entreprises Verney dans l'ouest de la France comme ils étaient en 1969.

Le groupe Verney fabriquait de nombreux bus et autorails utilisés sur leurs circuits d'autobus et lignes ferroviaires. Autorails construits à partir de 1922 et les autobus à partir de 1934. Sous la direction de François Verney les carrosseries ont été construits sur châssis Panhard, Renault et Citroën; ils ont été suivis par une Citroën à moteur arrière, qui a pris la route en mai 1940. En 1956, les activités de fabrication ont été renommés Société des Automobiles et Matériels Verney, ensuite formée en une société séparée CBM Car et Bus le Mans à partir de 1977. CBM a cessé toute production d'autobus en 1986 ayant dévié de leur marché traditionnel de l'autobus interurbain et rural dans la construction d'autobus urbains, un marché concurrentiel dans lequel il a été difficile de convaincre les opérateurs établis à changer de fournisseur. Leur héritage est le modèle 220B qui a été poursuivi par Renault comme le R212, et puis plus tard à partir de 1989 par Heuliez comme modèle GX77H. Maintenant un fournisseur de pièces, CBM s'est relooké vers l'entretien de voitures et de bus.

Dans 1977 les filiales d'exploitation Verney, puis six, géraient quelques cent dix-neuf véhicules entre eux. Même année le groupe Verney est devenu associé au groupe Michelin, qui contrôlait alors les Transports Citroën. En Sarthe, 1983 a vu le premier accord signé par STAO avec le département pour le fonctionnement du réseau départemental des lignes de bus. 1985 a vu l'introduction du groupe des agences de voyage pour soutenir leurs activités et sous le nom «Tourisme Verney». En 1990, le groupe a regagné son indépendance et c'est à nouveau sous le contrôle de la famille Verney, en conservant les nombreuses routes de l'ancienne Transports Citroen (fondée en 1931 par le fabricant comme un moyen d'établir un marché pour leurs bus et autocars). À son tour Verney a été acquise par le groupe Connex en 2002. Il s'agissait de 2700 autobus et autocars et 3300 employés, avec opérations principalement dans les Pays de la Loire, Bretagne et Normandie, et aussi en Rhône-Alpes, la région parisienne et Alsace. En Novembre 2005, Connex a changé son nom à Veolia Transport.

The operating companies in 1969

Les sociétés en exploitation en 1969

A note on STAO from May 2007 - courtesy of PA Menant:

About Verney - I can confirm that today STN, STAO Mayenne, STAO Sarthe, CTM, CAT and TIV run pretty much the same services. To be more accurate in Mayenne STAO stills runs these lines from Laval (see the map below). Lines 1A, 1B (both these lines are line 1A now); line 2 whose last stop is now Pré-en-Pail (and not Alençon); line 4 whose last stop is now Ernée (and not Saint-Hilaire du Harcouet); line 5 whose last stop is Ernée (and not Gorron); line 7 which goes further to Saint Pierre des Landes; line 8; line 9A (now line 9) which runs from Laval to Sablé through Meslay; lines 13 and 14 (now line 16) run from Mayenne to Ernee and from Ernee to Landivy on demand; line 15 (now line 3) doesn't run to Le Mans anymore but to Sainte-Suzanne (two villages further than Saint Jean sur Erve indicated on the timetable). The lines 1C, 3 and 10 have been scrapped. Line 16 was shut down and then reopened in 2005 (but is run by another local company). Lines 11 and 12 have been modified as well and are now run by other companies. The lines 4 and 15 replaced former local railway lines that had been shut down just before or after the World War II. The line 13-14 replaced a SNCF railway line shut down in 1938. You can get pictures of today's STAO coaches from my website: http://www.mobilite53.com/phototheque.htm. Verney was also a railcar maker and some of its railcars used to run on the 1 meter gauge railway line from La Blanc to Argent not far away from Tours. You can see pictures of Verney railcars here: http://autorails.free.fr/Verney-x210.htm. STAO Mayenne runs as well some urban services in Laval (but it is not the main provider). In Normandy STAO still runs the urban services in Flers but not in Alençon. In Brittany TIV now runs urban services in Fougères. All the coaches of STAO Sarthe run on biofuel (apart from a few that run services on regional lines). In the area of Tours, and in Poitou, Verney now runs much less services.

In Mayenne today the departmental network is known as the Réseau Pégase. The descendants of STAO are still operating as part of that network; other routes are operated by Keolis.

Historically the company, a subsidiary of Verney, started in the late 19th century but under several identities. At the time it built and operated local railways as Chemins de Fer Départementaux de la Mayenne. Some years later, a bus company was bought, "Les Courriers de la Mayenne." For nearly half a century, the company operated both passenger transport and freight carrying activities. In 1969 Les Courriers de la Mayenne changed its name to STAO (Société de Transports Automobiles de l’Ouest) Réseau de la Mayenne. Eight years later the freight business was discontinued (1977). 1981 saw a contract signed between STAO and the Conseil Général of Mayenne, with a departmental plan of public transport put in place. In 2002 the Verney group joined Connex, which subsequently became Veolia. Then in 2007 STAO Veolia Transport became STAO-PL Veolia Transport (Société de Transports Automobiles de l’Ouest - Pays de la Loire).

The network of bus routes in Ille-et-Vilaine is now secured by the departmental authorities under the name Illenoo. A new innovation in 2011 is the direct operation of some of the Illenoo routes by a departmentally owned subsidiary Illevia. Based at Noyal Châtillon sur Seiche to the south of Rennes with 50 buses, Illevia is expected to generate substantial savings. This will be one 1/4 of the network of public transport. The remaining 3/4 will remain assigned to private carriers, wherever possible regional companies. As an update, in the summer of 2011 TIV lost the contract for operating the Illenoo network to Kéolis.

The origins of Tramways d'Ille et Vilaine lie in May 1896 with local rail lines. By 1910 the network extended from Rennes to Bécherel, Antrain sur Couesnon, Pleine Fougères and St Malo. In the 1930s excursion trains were put into operation in the summer with great success to the destinations like the forest of Paimpont or the seaside at Saint Malo. Through the constant rise of the automobile, resulting in a steady decline in patronage, from the 1950s the bus takes over from the train. TIV maintain their well known name, meaning now Transports d'Ille et Vilaine et extensions. In 1958 Verney acquired SAFTA (société anonyme fougeraise de transport automobile) and Cars Bleus (in Saint Malo). These combined as SAFMAT whixh in turn became part of TIV in 1965, denoting the final integration of the new combined entity in the Verney group. In 1968, further growth occurred when the Conseil Général sold Tramways Breton of Saint Malo to the TIV. In January 2002, Verney joined the Connex group, now Veolia Transport.

In 2011 CTM operates 8 regular routes supported by the Conseil Général du Morbihan as part of the departmental Réseau TIM. Affiliated company Aria runs 3 further supported lines in Morbihan. CTM also operates two minibus routes for the neighbouring Conseil Général de la Loire-Atlantique as part of their Réseau Lila.

In 1892 the Conseil Général entrusted the construction and operation of a local rail network to the Compagnie des Chemins de Fer du Morbihan (CM). The Verney group is involved to a degree from the beginning. Six years later an intial network of 190 km is agreed. The Conseil Général decides in 1939 to replace the rail network with buses. CM continues its passenger transport role by road. Verney acquires a majority holding in CM in 1968 and the name was changed to CTM, Compagnie de Transports du Morbihan. In 2002, Verney joined the Connex group, now Veolia Transport.

Since September 2007 Manche has had a departmental network called manéo. Six main interurban services linked the principal towns, plus twenty seven feeder services connecting with the main routes. The main contractor who gained the tender for the operation of the network was Veolia subsidiary VTNI. Some routes are sub-contracted.

There were originally three local rail companies in the département of la Manche: Tramways Normands (TN), Chemins de Fer Départementaux (CFD), and Chemins de Fer de la Manche (CFM). CFD and CFM were in financial difficulty by 1925 and it was agreed that TN take over all of the local railways. TN became the Compagnie des Chemins de Fer Normands (CFN) in 1928, operating both trains and buses as part of the Verney group. Many of the local rail lines closed in the 1930s, except the standard gauge lines in the Barfleur area. The Société des Transports de Normandie (STN) was set up in June 1943 - originally as a road freight company only (as passenger operations continued under the CFN name). The last local rail service ceased on 30th September 1950 (the "Tue-Vaques" from Cherbourg to Barfleur), then it was buses only. STN expanded into road passenger services by taking over the CFN buses in 1953. In February 1957 the routes of the SGTD Société des Transports Départementaux de la Manche merged with STN, bringing together the two local networks. STN - as a Verney subsidiary - joined the Connex group in 2002, now part of Veolia Transport, which operates locally as VTNI.

		STAO timetable 1963/64 for Réseau de la Sarthe
In 2011 in Sarthe there is a departmental network of bus routes, supported by the Conseil Général, called the Réseau TIS (Transports Interurbains de la Sarthe). STAO is still a principal provider. In Maine-et-Loire the Anjoubus network is based on Angers and Cholet. To trace the outline history of STAO it is necessary to go back beyond the start of bus operations. There were initially in the late 19th century two companies competing with local rail lines in the department: Beldant Baert and Verney Dequaindry. Gradually, the two companies had to work closely together, eventually merging in 1927 under the leadership of Louis Verney with the birth of the SCF (Société Centrale des Chemins de Fer). Having lasted half a century the rail operations were gradually converted to road transport for economic reasons. In turn, the SCF continued a conversion that led to their buses travelling along the roads across Sarthe. The year 1933 saw the establishment by SCF of STAO (Société de Transports Automobiles de l’Ouest) as a bus operating subsidiary of the Verney group. There were originally nine routes, several crossing into other deparments, extending to Angers in Maine-et-Loire, Alencon in Orne, Tours in Indre-et-Loire and Laval in Mayenne. Departments that would develop their own STAO bus networks. Also three routes based on Alencon (in the department of Orne) started at the same time, two towards Mamers and one to Le Mans. The following year 1934 the manufacture of buses commenced in Le Mans. Operating commercially for fifty years, STAO won a tendered operating agreement with the department of Sarthe in 1983. Since then STAO has continued to run on behalf of the Sarthe department. Currently it operates 17 lines that serve 165 municipalities for the TIS, mainly based on Le Mans. Veolia subsidiary CAA (Compagnie des Autocars de l'Anjou) is the current operator of many of the Anjoubus lines.

In 2011 there is a comprehensive bus network Touraine Fil Vert supported by the Conseil-Général serving Indre-et-Loire, whilst in Vienne there is the Lignes en Vienne network. The former is operated by Connex Ligeria, the local subsidiary of Véolia Transport in Indre et Loire, the latter by the Rapides de Poitou and Veolia Transport Poitou-Charentes.

The two réseaux of Tours (Indre-et-Loire) and Poitou (Vienne), which are believed to have been developed in the 1930s, have usually been thought of together despite being in two different departments. Tradirtionally they have shared a common numbering system for their routes. For many years there were two main country bus operators in the département of Indre-et-Loire. One was the Verney group subsidiary STAO Société es Transports Automobiles de l'Ouest, the other was Les Rapides de Touraine, both based on Tours. There was little overlap between the routes of the two companies, and both operator's routes departed from the Gare Routière in the Place de la Gare at Tours railway station.

IDating from 2001, the departmental network is Cap Orne with 24 regular interurban bus lines based on the five principal centres of Alençon, Flers, Argentan, Mortagne-au-Perche and L’Aigle. Veolia subsidiary VTNI is one of the main providers with fifteen of the routes.

From an original base of a few routes based on Alençon in 1933 further routes were added as secondary rail lines closed in the 1930s and 1940s and in the early 1960s four further routes were acquired from Autocars du Pays d'Auge.

Dating from 2006 there is an extensive network of bus routes supported by the department of Seine-Maritime. These routes are provided by Compagnie Normande d'Autobus (VTNI), Keolis and independent operators. In Eure there is a network of 30 regular lines serving 300 places. The origins of these réseaux are not yet known, although in existence by 1946.

In 2011 there is the network Tibus in the Côtes d'Armor, and CAT Compagnie Armoricaine de Transports (a Veolia subsidiary) is one of the principal providers based at St Brieuc, Dinan and Lannion.

The origins of CAT are unclear at present but are believed to have grown from a Citroën concessionary company, SAT Société Armoricaine de Transports (Compagnie Armoricaine de Transports Citroën from 1933 to 1941). From 1933 some of the original secondary rail lines were taken over directly by the department, but all their bus operations ceased in 1956 and except for two lines were transferred to Compagnie Fermière du Département des Côtes du Nord. The title CAT Compagnie Armoricaine de Transports was in use by 1948 and was widely employed as named operator for the Verney group across the department by at least 1961.

In 2011 there is Réseau Penn-ar-Bed with 48 regular lines provided by 14 operators.

Originally there was the bus operator Compagnie de Transports du Finistère (CTF - see below) and before that the Compagnie des Chemins de Fer Départementaux du Finistère (CFDF) who were a Beldant-Baert subidiary running secondary rail lines in the department from as early as 1891. CFDF took over other secondary lines on behalf of the department in 1922 but following disagreement in 1935 the department took the lines back under their own operation. Previous to that a Verney subsidiary bus company CTF had been established. In 1962 CTF became known as Compagnie Armoricaine de Transports - Réseau de Finistère, a subsidiary of the CAT of St Brieuc in the neighbouring department of Côtes du Nord.

The 1949 timetable and list of routes for the Compagnie de Transports du Finistère (compare with the map above).

with thanks and acknowledgement to the researches of John Carman, Malcolm Chase and PA Menant
avec des remerciements et la reconnaissance aux recherches de John Carman, Malcolm Chase et PA Menant

I would be very pleased to learn more about these operators if any French readers of this page have further information !
Si les lecteurs français de cette page pouvaient m’apporter des informations complémentaires à propos de ces autocaristes, je leur en serais reconnaissant !

Click here to return to main index page

Cliquez ici pour retourner à la page d'accueil pour la Normandie