The Coach Drivers’ Club (CDC) has been closed after 38 years, owner Diversified Communications UK has announced. The step to close the Club also includes ending publication of the monthly magazine CDC News and the annual CDC Tourism Yearbook.
Diversified and its predecessors have owned CDC since 2005, having taken over management from Phil and Judith Buston. In this time, the brand and its relationships within the coach industry have gone from strength to strength.
However, wider pressures brought about by the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic are responsible for the “extremely difficult decision,” the company says in a letter to CDC members.
“We have been overwhelmed by the reactions to the announcement about closure of the Club. We are so touched to hear how valuable the CDC has been to our members over the many years and that it will be remembered fondly. We would like to express our sincere thanks to everyone for their support and understanding”, says Group Director Helen Conway.
While the Club will be closed, its popular Facebook group will continue to be maintained by Diversified. That will act as a forum for drivers to continue to communicate via social media. It will also include the latest industry news from routeone.
Content from the 2020 CDC Tourism Yearbook, including coach parking information, will soon be added as downloadable files to the CDC Facebook group.
The Coach Drivers’ Club was founded in 1982. The first issue of CDC News was published in 1983. The CDC Tourism Yearbook had come to be known as the coach driver’s bible and it sold strongly to operators and drivers alike.