Discontinued and renumbered routes are in parentheses. Discontinued routes are indicated by "disc."
With many routes, competing bus service was introduced by various independent companies. But between 1937 and 1940, those companies were all acquired by Cincinnati Newport & Covington Railway, eliminating the competition.
Route numbers were adopted in 1921, when the Dixie Terminal was opened in Cincinnati. Two streetcar routes listed were discontinued prior to 1921, and have no listed route numbers.
Earlier/Later Horse First First First Streetcars Notes
Route Route Car Horse Electric Buses/ Discontinued
Number Name Company Car Streetcar Company To Buses
Scott SC&C 1876 none disc. 1893
Patterson 1895 disc. 6/ /17
1 Florence 1922 DTC
(2) Greenup 1893 3/30/46 disc. 1950's
3 Ludlow CSR 1876 1893 1927 LT 11/ 5/39 TB until 3/17/58
(4) Main St.-Park Hills C&C 1875 1890 1/ 3/48 disc. 1/ 6/2007
5 Holman 1896 1929 CT 1/ 3/48
5 (Highland) 1930 KMC
(6) Madison CSR 1867 1890 1930 CBL 7/11/37 TB until 3/17/58
(6) 7 Rosedale 1893 1925 Ross 7/11/37 TB until 3/17/58
7 Latonia 1893 1925 Ross 7/11/37 TB until 12/ /54
8 Eastern Avenue SC&C 1887 1894 3/30/46
(9) (17) Belt Line 1897 1930 MBL 2/26/39 disc. 2/26/39
(10) 1 Lewisburg 12/20/02 1925 DTC 7/ 3/50 disc. 10/16/64
11 Ft. Thomas 1893 1929 DTC 8/23/47
12 Dayton N&D 1871 1893 1922 NKT 4/28/40
(13) (23) S. Bellevue 11/24/04 1922 NKT 4/29/37 disc. 6/10/54
(14) (24) York NSR 1867 1893 1940 disc. 7/ 6/53
(15) (24) Southgate 1894 1929 DTC 5/24/36 disc. 1976
(16) 11 Washington NSR 1881 1895 1930 BDS 8/23/47 disc. 6/10/54
(17) Crosstown NSR 1867 1892 1930 MBL 10/17/34 disc. 1972
17X Villa Hills Express 1937 CSB
(18) East Newport 5/31/36 CN&C disc. 6/ /63
(19) (20) West Newport 5/31/36 CN&C
(20) South Newport 5/31/36 CN&C disc. 2017
(21) 11 N. Ft. Thomas 1929 DTC disc. 1980's
(22) Fairfield 12/ 8/47 CN&C disc. 7/ 6/53
(23) South Bellevue 4/39/37 CN&C disc.
(24) Cold Spring 1911 Cold disc. 2003
25 Alexandria 1938 ABC
C&C - Covington & Cincinnati Street Railway
CSR - Covington Street Railway
N&D - Newport & Dayton Street Railway
NSR - Newport Street Railway
SC&C - South Covington & Cincinnati Street Railway
Horse car service on Scott was abandoned in 1893, as new electric streetcar route was constructed on paralleling Greenup.
TB indicates trolleybus routes.
COMPETING BUS COMPANIES
During the 1920's and 1930's, new bus companies were formed, which created bus routes which competed with most of the streetcar routes, abbreviated as follows:
ABC - Alexandria Bus Co.
CN&C - Cincinnati Newport & Covington Railway
BDS - Black Diamond Stages
CBL - Citizens Bus Line
Cold - Cold Spring Bus Co.
CSB - Crescent Springs Bus Co.
CT - Central Transit Co.
DTC - Dixie Traction Co.
KMC - Kentucky Motor Coach Co.
LT - Ludlow Transit Lines
MBL - Merchants Bus Line
NKT - Northern Kentucky Transit Co.
Ross - Ross Motor Coaches
The Cold Spring Bus Co. was formed in 1931, merging three operations serving the Ft. Thomas and Cold Spring areas. Those operations were formed between 1910 and 1912, using modified trucks, and were generally unsuccessful. The Cold Spring Bus Co. also owned the Alexandria Bus Co.
In 1915, J. W. Bentler began operating a bus line southwest to Erlanger, connecting with the Ft. Mitchell streetcar line. That line failed in 1918. But in 1922, Dixie Traction Co. began operating buses in that area. The company originally considered using trolleybuses, thus "Traction" in its name. Through service into Covington and Cincinnati began in 1925, competing with the streetcar line.
In 1929, Dixie Traction introduced two bus routes between Cincinnati and Ft. Thomas, meaning further competition to the streetcars. And during that period, several other bus companies introduced competing routes throughout the Northern Kentucky area.
In 1925, People's Transit Co. began competing with Northern Kentucky Transit along the Dayton route. And in 1930, People's Transit acquired Northern Kentucky Transit.
Lloyd Ross of Ross Motor Coaches also owned Central Transit, as a separate company. In 1935, Lloyd Ross acquired People's Transit and merged it with Central Transit, forming People's Central Transit Lines, still keeping it as a separate company.
Kathryn Ross (no relation) owned Citizens Bus Line and Merchants Bus Line. In 1935, those lines were combined into Citizens-Merchants Bus Lines. At the same time, Kathryn Ross formed a partnership with Ben Perry, owner of Kentucky Motor Coach Co., although keeping them as separate companies.
The Cincinnati Newport & Covington Railway Co. first operated buses in 1936, with its first conversion from a streetcar route. And after the area was devastated by a flood in 1937, Cincinnati Newport & Covington Railway acquired the two Lloyd Ross companies, the two Kathryn Ross companies, and Ludlow Transit Lines. All competing bus lines were discontinued, while the acquired buses were used to temporarily substitute for the damaged streetcar system. The Kentucky Motor Coach route via Highland was retained, as the only acquired route not competing with a streetcar route.
The last independent bus companies were Dixie Traction Co., Cold Spring Bus Co., and Black Diamond Stages. In 1940, Cincinnati Newport & Covington completed acquisition of those independent companies. Dixie Traction Co. remained a separate wholy owned subsidiary until 1955.
Not competing with the streetcars, but connecting with route 1, was the Crescent Springs Bus Co. That company started operating after World War II, after the failure of High Line Buses, which had began operating in 1937.
Always operating independently, was Newsom Bus Lines, connecting Covington with Visalia, until its demise in 1956.