LONDON (AP) — Shares in Stagecoach Group PLC dropped 16.5 percent yesterday after the UK-based transport company said it expects rail revenue to fall next year amid the deepening economic downturn.

Shares fell 16.5 percent to close at 143.2 pence ($2.11) on the London Stock Exchange.

Rail operations accounted for nearly 40 percent of operating profit in the six months ended October 31, the company reported. Stagecoach said it believed its bus operations in Britain and the North America would feel little impact next year from the economic slump.

"Our rail operations are more susceptible to changes in economic conditions, partly because of the relatively high fixed cost base of the UK train operating company model," the company said. "While the depth and duration of the economic downturn is difficult to forecast, we anticipate a sharp reduction in central London employment and a fall in UK gross domestic product during the next 12 to 18 months."