Stagecoach is celebrating 25 years in the south east, having purchased the East Kent Road Car Company with its fleet of 240 buses in 1993.

The last quarter century has seen considerable expansion with the fleet almost doubling to 459 buses, a revitalised route network based on commercial strength and many local services enhanced to frequencies never seen before.

New technology has also brought vehicles offering the latest cleaner engine technology to provide greener travel.

“Stagecoach has successfully served Kent over the last 25 years”, commented Matthew Arnold, Commercial Director at Stagecoach South East.

“This year will see us carry more than 43 million passengers and our fleet of buses covers more than 19 million miles.

“Thanks to the ongoing investment in energy efficient buses and by adopting new technologies, such as contactless payments and our mobile ticketing App, plus the hard work of our 1,300 staff, we have a business that is having a positive impact on the economic and social wellbeing of Kent and East Sussex.”

Earlier this year, Stagecoach put two silver liveried buses into service in East Kent as part of its celebrations to mark the anniversary.

A double-decker bus was in service in Canterbury while an open top vehicle ran along the Thanet coast.

Stagecoach South East serves the Kent community from its headquarters in Canterbury.

Local depots are situated in Herne Bay, Thanet, Ashford, Folkestone, Dover, Hastings and Eastbourne with a small outstation at Old Romney.

Stagecoach is one of the biggest bus operators in the UK, running around 7,000 vehicles in nearly 100 towns and cities in the UK.

To celebrate its 25th anniversary, Stagecoach South East is giving away one year of bus travel worth more than £1,200.

Check out the What's On section in this week's KM Group newspapers for your chance to win this great prize.

The competition will also be appearing in the Thanet Extra.