Double-Deck Rivals No More

And the end has come to the competition between the red vs. blue double-deck tourist buses that roam New York City.

Gray Line New York, which operates the red buses, will form a joint venture with CitySights NY, which operates the blue buses.

The deal was announced Wednesday by Stagecoach Group plc, which owns Gray Line, along with Coach USA, MegaBus and rail and bus operations in the United Kingdom. Stagecoach is headquartered in Perth, Scotland.

The new joint venture will be called Twin America, LLC, but Gray Line New York and CitySights NY will continue to operate under their own names.

"This new joint venture will allow us to deliver a more coordinated service to our customers, who will have access to a high-quality, good value range of sightseeing products," Brian Souter, the chief executive of Stagecoach Group said in a statement announcing the deal. "Both businesses will also benefit from a number of synergies, which will make our collective operations more efficient and give us a strong platform for the future."

The travel site NewYorkology pointed out that the two companies already offer many of the same routes and that Gray line is currently running several $10 discounts to undercut CitySights prices by $5 per tour.