M & M Buses - Wagga Wagga
This is a historic listing of vehicles owned and operated by M & M Buses - Wagga Wagga.
| Operator Information | Full Fleet List | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accreditation: | BG & RJ Malaquin, KJ & PE Morden t/a Twomey’s Bus Service. Renamed M & M Buses, Wagga around 1998. Acc Nos 8087 (coach) & 9500 (bus). |
| Depot Address/s: | 27 Lake Albert Rd, Wagga Wagga (two units to the right of Makeham’s Coaches) from around 1998. |
| Livery: | White bus, dark blue flash, mid band angled at rear axle. Light blue below windows and bands surrounding the dark blue mid band. |
| Service Runs: | Wagga Wagga - Echuca (Monday/Wednesday/Friday/Sunday) Albury - Echuca (Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday) Won on tender 1/93, lost on retender 3/96. |
| School Runs: | Purchased from JJ & DJ Twomey, Wagga Wagga -/89: Wagga Wagga - Lockhart Wagga Wagga - Lockhart overflow (ceased by 1990) Purchased from PJ & GM Convery, Wagga Wagga -/96: Wagga Wagga - Currawarna (Gap Road) Wagga Wagga - Currawarna (Narrandera Road) Purchased from NB & G Chapman, Ladysmith 3/98: Ladysmith Public School - Coreinbob (gained high school feeder to remaining Wagga run) Wagga Wagga - Ladysmith / Coreinbob (ceased) Wagga Wagga - Ladysmith / Kyeamba |
This family partnership commenced in the bus industry by purchasing Wagga Bus Rentals, a hire-drive mini bus business based in Hammond Avenue, near the old Wagga flour mill.
In 1989, Barry Malaquin and Ken Morden purchased the two Wagga Wagga - Lockhart school contracts of JJ & DJ Twomey, Wagga Wagga with 4 buses. Twomeys had built up a good charter connection to complement the two school contracts. Malaquin and Morden kept the Twomey’s Bus Service trading name and over the next 18 years proceeded to build up a neat and tidy school contract and charter business.
1990 saw the overflow Wagga Wagga - Lockhart school contract cease with MO 9713 Nissan UD /Nambucca sold to Peter Lehman at Warren.
In 1991, the first of five second hand coaches was added to the fleet in the shape of TV 1219 Denning Denair purchased from Newman’s Coaches in Sydney. This culminated in the awarding , by tender, of the Wagga Wagga - Echuca - Albury Countrylink coach diagram in December 1992. This had been previously operated by Hussey’s Roadliners, Deniliquin. Commencing in January 1993, operation of this contract lasted until March 1996, after it was lost on retender to Purtill Bros, Deniliquin. A new coach for this contract - MO 2626 Australian Autobus - was delivered in August 1995. The loss of the contract saw the sale of this coach to Edwards Coaches in Armidale.
The hire-drive business had been sold by this time.
The two Wagga Wagga - Currawarna school bus contracts were purchased from PJ & GM Convery, Wagga Wagga Wagga with one bus in 1996.
Three school contracts in the Ladysmith area were purchased from NB & G Chapman, Ladysmith with 2 buses in March 1998. Concurrently with this purchase saw the sale of the coach charter side of the business to LJ & AV Makeham, Nangus with 2 coaches in March 1998.
With the change in composition of the business, now concentrating on school contract and local charter, the trading name was changed from Twomey’s Bus Service to M & M Buses. This reflected the owners’ surnames.
Rationalisation of the Ladysmith school contracts saw the Wagga Wagga - Ladysmith -Coreinbob school contract cease, with the Ladysmith Public School - Coreinbob contract having an additional high school service added to its operation.
Barry Malaquin, with his wife, now sole owners of the business, split and sold the business two ways in January 2007:-
1. The two Wagga Wagga - Currawarna contracts and the Wagga Wagga - Lockhart contract were sold to Allens Coaches Coolamon Pty Ltd with 4 buses (MO 2126, MO 3383, MO 5830 & MO 7915).
2. The remaining two Ladysmith based contracts were sold to new operator Wayne K Priest, Wagga Wagga with 2 buses (MO 2986 & MO 3410).
Information supplied by Allan Ofak.
