Arriva acquires Croatia’s top ranking private bus company

Credit: Autotrans Facebook

Arriva has confirmed its place as one of Europe’s largest passenger transport operators by acquiring a major share of a top ranking private bus company in Croatia.

Credit: Autotrans Facebook

The deal gives Arriva a 78.34% share in Autotrans Group (ATG), meaning Arriva is now the number one private bus operator in Croatia.

This follows two recent deals which confirmed Arriva as a provider of key rail services in Sweden and the Netherlands – winning contracts worth more than €2 billion.

“We are always looking for opportunities where we believe our experience and skills can make a real difference to passenger transport services in Europe,” said Manfred Rudhart, Arriva Group CEO. “Croatia, and more broadly Central and Eastern Europe, represents an important growth opportunity for our expanding business and the Autotrans Group represented a good strategic fit for us. We will now focus on doing what we do best, which is to drive improvements for our customers in the region”

Arriva has operated in Croatia since 2013, and the deal with Autotrans signals the company’s commitment to improving public transport services in the country.

“Autotrans is a highly-respected bus operator in Croatia with nearly 70 years of experience,” added Drazen Divjak, Managing Director for Arriva Croatia. “They have successfully built a reputation for reliability and a strong customer service ethos and we are keen to build on their success. We have a strong track record for delivering real benefits to passengers and tendering authorities, and this acquisition allows us to expand our operations to create a robust network across the country and deliver improved, better connected door to destination services for our passengers.”

Arriva now has responsibility for running long distance and local services throughout the Croatia.