Bus firm names 36 bus after Harrogate Lioness


Driver Christine Gill with newly named 36 bus

She’s an England cup-winning legend who brought football home … and now Harrogate-born Rachel Daly’s very own 36 bus is on the road in her home town!

The Harrogate Bus Company has named one of its route 36 buses after Rachel in honour of her amazing success at Euro 2022, which saw her jubilant team lift the European Women’s Championship Trophy.

Supporters packed into pubs in and around Harrogate to follow Rachel’s journey to glory in front of a capacity crowd at Wembley Stadium in London last Sunday (31 July 2022), which ended in triumph for England and a first trophy win since the men’s World Cup victory 56 years ago in 1966.

Now the gleaming double-decker proudly bearing Rachel’s name will be seen regularly in the town where she was born and grew up, on the flagship 36 route linking Harrogate with Leeds and Ripon.

The Harrogate Bus Company General Manager Frank Stanisauskis said: “Rachel and the England team’s stunning performance throughout the Euro 2022 tournament has captivated the whole nation, and nowhere more so than right here in Harrogate.

“Naming one of our buses after Rachel is our way of saying thank you for her amazing success which has brought football home. Rachel is a fantastic role model for young sportswomen in Harrogate and around the world and naming a bus in her honour is all about celebrating her amazing achievements.

“Rachel and the England Women’s team have brought football home, and now we’re bringing our bus named in honour of this amazing star home to our 36 route where it’ll now be seen across Harrogate, Ripon and Leeds.”

30-year-old Rachel was born and grew up in Harrogate, attending the town’s Rossett School as a teenager and becoming a star performer in its football teams. Rachel dedicated England’s Wembley win to her late father Martyn, who sadly died last September: Martyn lived in Harrogate and was a semi-professional footballer with Harrogate Town and Knaresborough Town in the 1980s and 1990s.

Rachel’s named bus is the third route 36 double decker to be named in honour of a sports personality: in 2016 the operator named one of its buses after Ripon Olympic diving hero Jack Laugher, while last July a second bus was named in honour of England manager and local resident Gareth Southgate as his team reached their first major tournament final in 55 years.

Other 36 buses have previously been named by The Harrogate Bus Company in memory of former Harrogate Bus Station inspector Peter Melville-Smith, to mark the late Harry Gration MBE’s final day with BBC Look North, and to salute bus industry design guru Ray Stenning, who created the 36 route’s distinctive red and black livery.

Full details of all The Harrogate Bus Company’s routes, times and fare deals are available online at transdevbus.co.uk/harrogate and on the free to download Transdev Go mobile app.


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Sam Oakes

Web designer based in Harrogate, North Yorkshire

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