Kastoria Bus Lines

Kastoria Bus Lines
BusTech bodied Volvo B8RLE departing Craigieburn railway station bus interchange in June 2025
ParentNorthern Transit Holdings
Commenced operation
May 1964
Ceased operation
30 June 2025 (Route service)
Late 2025-early 2026 (School and charter)
HeadquartersWestmeadows
Service areaNorth-Western Melbourne
Service typeBus operator
Routes5 (until June 2025)
Fleet82 (November 2022)
Chief executive
Dom Sita
Websitenationwidetours.com.au/kastoria

Kastoria Bus Lines was a route, school and charter bus and coach operator based in Melbourne, Australia. The company operated five routes under contract to Public Transport Victoria until 30 June 2025, which were then transferred to CDC Melbourne on 1 July 2025. Its school and charter operations would then follow suite to CDC Victoria in late 2025 and early 2026.

The company, along with the Nationwide Tours charter operation, was formed in 1964. It was owned by the Spyrou family until 2009, when it came under Northern Transit Holdings ownership, which also operated Broadmeadows Bus Service and Seymour Coaches. Since early 2026, Northern Transit Holdings no longer operates in Melbourne but continues to operate their regional town bus and school and charter operations under Seymour Coaches.

History

Volgren bodied Volvo B7RLE in December 2014

In 1964, the Spyrou and Sikavitsas families purchased routes 475, 476, 477 and 479 from Barnes Bus Lines and formed Kastoria Bus Lines.

In January 1971, the company was split, with the Spyrou gaining full control of Kastoria Bus Lines with routes 475 and 476, and the Sikavitsas family taking 477 and 479 to form Tullamarine Bus Lines. In May 1973, Kastoria Bus Lines acquired route 501.

Devesons Bus & Coach Service was acquired in October 1979. Coaches are operated under the Nationwide Tours brand.[1]

In August 2009, the Spyrou family sold Kastoria Bus Lines to Dominic Sita, son of the Sita Buslines's founder George Sita.[2][3] In 2011, Sita moved the Kastoria depot from Airport West (at 77E Matthews Avenue) to a new site at Westmeadows.[4]

Kastoria Bus Lines had since been reorganised under Northern Transit Holdings, along with other Dominic Sita's bus businesses, including Broadmeadows Bus Service which was acquired in 2011.[5][6][4]

As part of CDC Melbourne's successful bid for bus services in northern and western Melbourne (including Kastoria's routes), Kastoria agreed to transfer its fleet, its Westmeadows depot and staff to CDC. The transfer of these assets and bus routes occurred on 1 July 2025.[7][8] Routes transferred was 460, 462, 463, 469 and 476.[9] However, as CDC was impacted by driver industrial action on 1 July 2025, CDC operations did not commence on these routes until the following day, 2 July 2025.[10]

Following the transfer of the Westmeadows depot and route services to CDC, Nationwide Tours and the Kastoria charter operations continued to share the Westmeadows depot with CDC. They were subsequently absorbed into CDC Victoria in October 2025, and rebranded into CDC by early 2026.[11][12][13]

Fleet

As of November 2022, the fleet consisted of 82 buses and coaches.[14] The fleet livery is blue and white.

References

  1. ↑ Melbourne Metropolitan Bus Operators and Fleet Listings. Melbourne: Bus & Coach Society of Victoria. 1991. p. 30.
  2. ↑ Sita Group to buy out Kastoria Bus Lines Australasian Bus & Coach 22 July 2009
  3. ↑ Kastoria Bus Lines Australian Bus Panorama issue 25/4 January 2010 page2 6-17
  4. 1 2 "GENERATION NEXT – Kastoria Buslines". Australasian Bus & Coach. 26 October 2018. Archived from the original on 14 March 2022. Retrieved 28 October 2018.
  5. ↑ Northern Transit Holdings - Broadmeadows Bus Service Australian Bus Fleet Lists 12 January 2013
  6. ↑ Sita buys Broadmeadows Australasian Bus & Coach 1 June 2011
  7. ↑ "ComfortDelGro Australia wins bid to retain and expand bus services in Melbourne". ComfortDelGro Australia. 4 September 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  8. ↑ "UN 185: Network synergies from our new ZEB bus contracts". Melbourne on Transit. 12 September 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  9. ↑ "Metropolitan Zero Emission Bus (ZEB) Franchise - Purple & Orange - North West Melbourne". Buying for Victoria. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
  10. ↑ "Industrial action to disrupt bus services on Tuesday 1 July 2025". PTV. 1 July 2025. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  11. ↑ "UNITE! Newsletter" (PDF). CDC Victoria. January 2026. p. 3. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 July 2026. Retrieved 25 July 2026.
  12. ↑ "Charter". CDC Victoria. Archived from the original on 13 April 2026. Retrieved 25 July 2026.
  13. ↑ "Nationwide Tours is now CDC Victoria, part of CDC Australia". Archived from the original on 25 July 2026. Retrieved 25 July 2026.
  14. ↑ Northern Transit Holdings - Kastoria Bus Lines Australian Bus Fleet Lists

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