747/1 National Express, Percivals and Premier Travel service 747 Summer 1985 timetable leaflet cover

Premier Travel of Cambridge and Percivals Coaches of Oxford were two independent coach operators that had worked a joint service between those two university cities for a number of years. National Express (and its predecessor Associated Motorways) had operated services between East Anglia and Cheltenham/Bristol which also travelled via Cambridge and Oxford. The three operators subsequently entered into a joint working arrangement from Sunday 28 October 1984 which gave a more improved frequency of service on what became a cross country link between Bristol to Lowestoft numbered 747. This arrangement resulted in the vehicles of Premier Travel and Percivals operating west of Oxford and east of Cambridge and in the latter case also involved Ambassador Travel, United Counties Omnibus Company and Wessex of Bristol operating on behalf of National Express.