Tfl-specification MetroDecker trial Tfl

Transcription

19 August 2016
live
Issue 367
driving towards a greener future
Tfl-specification
MetroDecker trial
WHEN ALL
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contents
comment
4 06-15 news
Increased revenue and
profits for Rotala.
32-35 diary
06-15 news
TfL-spec Metrodecker
starts operation with GoAhead London.
36-40 product
Grayson and Zeta
embark on speed limiting
partnership.
16-19 analysis
Daimler runs its semiautonomous Future Bus
on live airport route in
Amsterdam.
42-44 tachographs
20-21 analysis
New Ensign Enterprise
provides a new option for
high-capacity doubledecks.
45-48 uniforms
Well-dressed staff can
enhance that vital first
impression for passengers.
22-26 international
New fleet of Otokar Kent C
buses for Malta.
49-52
27-30 people
Beverley Bell to step
down as senior traffic
commissioner in spring
2017.
54-58
Special heritage services
announced for Lothian
Buses open day.
Specialists in tachograph
systems and analysis.
who buys what
New Volvo B11R 9700 for
Furey’s Coaches of Sligo.
tourism
Strong growth for inbound
visitors, according to
VisitBritain.
August 2016
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news
Labour campaign for Scottish
re-regulation launched
While Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has re-affirmed his commitment to enabling local authorities
in England to run bus companies,
the Scottish Labour party has
also launched a new campaign to
re-regulate the bus industry and
accuses the SNP of “neglecting
public transport and putting profits before passengers during nearly
a decade in government”.
Labour claims that the SNP
had supported regulating the bus
industry before entering government in 2007 but had since taken
no action, and also highlighted
donations of more than £2million
to the SNP from Stagecoach chairman Brian Souter. It quotes Transport Scotland statistics showing
the number of bus journeys in
Scotland fell 15 per cent between
2007/08 and 2014/15, from 488
million to 414 million.
“One of the proudest achievements of the last Labour-led Scottish government was establishing
the free bus pass for pensioners,
making it easier for pensioners and
disabled people to get around and
interact with their community,”
says Scottish Labour transport
spokesman Neil Bibby. “But under
the SNP we have seen a record of
rising fare prices, plummeting
passenger numbers and continued
cutbacks from bus operators. The
SNP have missed the bus on public
transport.
“Labour would reverse the
decline in bus services by re-regulating the bus industry and will
launch a campaign for better bus
services across Scotland. The SNP
used to support this policy but
dropped it just before they formed
a government in 2007. As a consequence, passengers across Scot-
land have had to endure almost a
full decade of deterioration in valued and vital bus services.”
The party has not given any specific details on its policy proposals
for the bus industry in Scotland
although it is calling for what it
terms “meaningful regulation” of
bus services and points to the London tendering system as a potential
model. Its report, entitled ‘The SNP
have missed the bus’ states: “Communities and councils should be
able to negotiate a comprehensive
contract with bus companies that
will ensure operators not only get
to run the most profitable routes,
but also have to provide vital local
services as part of the overall deal.
That’s how it works in London and
if it’s good enough for London then
it is good enough for Scotland.”
www.scottishlabour.org.uk
Increased revenue
and profits for Rotala
Rotala reported increased half
year revenues in the wake of the
acquisition of OFJ Connections.
For the six months ended 31 May
2016, income increased by 11 per
cent to £27.4million compared
to the same period last year with
operating margins at 18.2 per cent
and pre-tax profits, before exceptional items increased by 9 per cent
to £1.1million.
The acquisition of OFC Connections, which operates at Heathrow,
Gatwick, London City and Southampton airports, contributed to the
rise in revenues in the contracted
services department, according
to Rotala, which also pointed to
growth in local authority bus con-
6 tracts contributing to the
rise in revenue.
Rotala remains upbeat
about the Bus Ser vices Bill which is currently going
through parliament, consistent
with its long-held view that some
element of re-regulation outside
London would be positive.
“In both the Bristol/Bath areas
and Greater Manchester it is clearly
envisaged that the local authorities
will use the legislation to achieve
complete control over local bus
networks by the franchise process,” says chairman John Gunn.
“But in the West Midlands a more
collaborative approach using bus
alliances is favoured by the local
authority.
“From our perspective both lines
of approach offer the prospect of
considerably increasing the market shares we can achieve to a level
to which we could not have aspired
under the existing structure of the
bus markets in these locations.
“Whilst the bus industry continues to undergo considerable
change, the aims of the government’s Buses Bill have become
much clearer … the effects of the
bill look to be very positive.”
www.rotalaplc.com
July 2016
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August 2016
7
news
industry data
Market prices
Operator
FirstGroup
Go-Ahead
Price
105
1867
High
116
2758
Low
80
1775
National Exp.
Rotala
355
65
358
76
253
59
Stagecoach
223
400
194
TfL-spec Metrodecker
starts operation with
Go-Ahead London
Closing prices on 18/08/16
plus 12 months high and low.
UK diesel price update pence per litre
Northern Ireland
Scotland
Wales
North
North West
Yorks & Humbs
West Midlands
East Midlands
East Anglia
South East
South West
110.0
111.6
111.5
111.4
111.5
111.4
111.9
111.7
112.0
112.5
112.0
Average weekly fuel prices for the UK by
region, June 2016. Source: AA
European diesel price update
pence per litre equivalent
Austria
Belgium
Czech Rep
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Netherlands
Hungary
Ireland
Italy
Luxembourg
Malta
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
86.1
100.1
85.1
105.5
87.7
100.1
100.1
92.7
97.6
103.4
88.9
96.8
116.7
78.6
96.0
112.6
72.2
98.5
87.7
113.8
111.2
European diesel pump price sample
June 2016. Source: AA
8 Go Ahead to trial London-spec
MetroDecker.
Optar e’s pre-production
10.5m Tf L-spec Metrodecker
demonstrator has gone into
service with Go-Ahead London,
operating at its Bexleyheath bus
garage, with the manufacturer
hoping for best-in-class fuel
consumption figures.
“Go-Ahead are committed
to taking care of our customers’ changing needs, today,
tomorrow and always, so we are
delighted to be able to put the
Metrodecker through its paces
in London and monitor its performance in terms of reliability,
serviceability and fuel efficiency
and also gain both customer
and driver feedback on this new
double-deck,” says Richard Harrington, engineering director,
Go-Ahead London.
Robert Drewery, Optare com-
mercial director, adds, “Across
all trials we have conducted
outside of London we are seeing
the vehicle consistently deliver
best-in-class mpg performance
in service.
“I am delighted that the Metrodecker will now be setting out
to prove itself in the capital. We
will be monitoring its performance closely and we look forward
to the feedback from Go-Ahead
London.”
The integral-built Metrodecker is powered by a Mercedes-Benz OM934LA, Euro 6,
four-cylinder engine with ZF
Ecolife transmission. It is available in two lengths: the two-door
TfL specification is 10.5m long,
while the single-door provincial
specification is 11.1m long.
www.optare.com
July 2016
news
Greater Manchester targets air
quality improvements
New measures to improve air
quality in Greater Manchester
have been agreed with an
updated Low-Emission Strategy and Air Quality Action
Plan approved by Greater
M a n c h e s te r C o m b i n e d
Authority.
The documents, which
were also ratified by members
of the Transport for Greater
Manchester Committee last
month, will be finalised and
published later this year ahead
of the air quality and emission
reduction programmes being
implemented.
The Air Quality Action Plan,
feeding into the overall LowEmission Strategy, includes a
range of measures to improve
air quality and reduce emissions across Greater Manchester, focusing on key
priority areas in urban centres
and near major roads which
currently fail to meet UK Government and EU air quality
objectives.
The measures include:
upgrading and renewing
the bus fleet including trials
of ultra-low-emission buses;
increasing the number of EV
charging points to encourage
uptake of electric cars and vans;
and improving and increasing
the information and data on air
pollution monitoring available to
the public through the GreatAir
Manchester website.
The GMCA approval follows
an eight-week public consultation on draft editions of the plans
earlier this year. TfGM, which
ran the consultation, received
more than 180 responses, with
around 75 per cent from members of the public and 25 per
cent from public and private
sector organisations including
environmental protection bodies, industry, trade associations
and transport operators.
Ninety-nine per cent of
respondents agreed that air
quality and carbon emissions
are important areas of concern
for Greater Manchester and
82 per cent agreed or partially
agreed that the LES and AQAP
set out the correct proposals
and policies required to tackle
the issues.
Tony Lloyd, interim mayor of
Greater Manchester.
Interim mayor of Greater
Manchester, Tony Lloyd,
says: “Air quality and carbon
emissions are two of the key
challenges facing Greater
Manchester.
“Air pollution and carbon
emissions not only cause
significant harm to the environment but can also cause
respiratory illness, cardiovascular disease and some
cancers. It is imperative that
we act now. Our new measures and policies will help
to clean up our environment
and improve life for people in
Greater Manchester.”
www.tfgm.com/2040
West Yorks buses consultation
A three-month consultation
on West Yorkshire’s transport
systems has got underway
with the first of 70 drop-in
sessions in an event at Bradford Interchange this week.
West Yorkshire Combined
Authority, in partnership with
district authorities and bus
operators First West Yorkshire, Arriva and Transdev,
aims to p roduc e new,
July 2016
20-year West Yorkshire Bus
and Transport strategies.
The Bus and Transpor t
Strategies will support the
recently-updated Leeds City
Region Strategic Economic
Plan’s targets of creating an
additional 35,700 jobs for local
people over the next 20 years,
and growing the City Region
economy at a faster rate than
the national average.
“Buses are by far the most
highly used form of public
transport with around 180
million bus journeys being
made in West Yorkshire
every year,” says Taj Salam,
West Yorkshire Combined
Authority Transport Committee member and Bradford
councillor.
www.yourtravelyoursay.co.uk
9
news
Franchising crucial says TfGM chair
Manchester’s transport chief
has told Public Service Executive
magazine that the city’s devolution plans might collapse unless
the bus franchising powers are
granted. Chair of the Transport
for Greater Manchester committee Andrew Fender expressed
concern about the progress of the
Bus Services Bill through parliament, noting that there is likely
to be vigorous lobbying from the
bus groups. Fender was quoted on
the PSE website saying: “What we
saw for all of the 30 years since
deregulation, but particularly in
the early years, was a rapid reduction in a number of services and
a year-on-year real-terms hike in
the fares, so a spiral of decline set
in pretty much from day one.
“We don’t know where the
60-odd million pounds a year on
concessionary travel goes, other
than the bottom line.”
www.publicsectorexecutive.com
www.tfgm.com
EYMS’ Peter Shipp responds ...
“I write as owner and chief
executive of one of the largest
independent bus companies in the
country, one of many independent and often long-established
family-owned bus operators which
between them run over one-fifth
of bus services in England.
“In your August article Andrew
Fender, chair of the Transport for
Greater Manchester committee, is
reported as saying in an interview
with the Public Service Executive
that in the 30 years since deregulation, there was a rapid reduction
in the number of bus services,
particularly in the early years. As
statistics readily available from the
DfT confirm, after the heady days
of the 1960s, when of course there
was far less car ownership, until
deregulation in 1986 there was a
steady decline in local bus service
mileage.
“However, immediately after
deregulation in 1986 annual bus
mileage increased steadily from
just under 1.3bn miles in 1985/6
to a peak of 1.659bn miles in
1999/2000. In the following few
years there was a slight reduction but then the figures held
steady, remaining above 1.6bn
until 2010/11 so still well above the
total pre-deregulation. Since then
we have seen a decline but that is
almost wholly due to cuts by local
authorities in their funding for
10 non-profitable services, especially
in rural areas.
“Elsewhere Councillor Fender
has been reported as also saying in that interview that the Bus
Services Bill would be the ‘end of
the party’ for bus operators who he
accused of feather-bedding their
profits with subsidies.
“It may be that some ‘big group’
subsidiaries do make more profit
in a few areas, but the impression that could be formed from
the comment is that many if not
all bus companies are in the same
situation, and this is most certainly not the case. The respected
transport industry analysts TAS
produce an annual report on bus
industry performance and the latest one published last year covers
the performance of 120 bus operators, including many subsidiaries
of those ‘big groups’ but also a lot
of the smaller independent operators mentioned above.
“Of the 120 operators in the TAS
report, 96 had operating profit
margins lower than 11% and of
those, 21 actually had negative
margins, i.e. made an operating loss. The TAS report points
out that operators outside London (where the business model is
very different) should be earning
a profit margin of between 10.5%
and 11% in order to earn a return
in line with the Competition
Commission’s 2009 assessment
of the industry’s weighted cost of
capital.
“So effectively at least 96 bus
operating companies or subsidiaries (and no doubt many smaller
operators not included in the TAS
analysis) were earning a return
below the level which would be
seen as acceptable by a Regulator,
in many cases well below.
In the case of my own company
which runs 300 buses and employs
700 people, our operating profit
margin was just 3.5% and for the
current calendar year is unlikely
that we will make any profit at all.
“It appears to be a widely held
view amongst some local and
national politicians that bus operations are very profitable but other
than in a very few cases this is
simply not true. Not long ago one
Labour politician, I believe in the
North West, described operating
buses as a “licence to print money”
and that very misleading statement
only served to reinforce the general
view of bus operating profits. “As a bus company which, like
many others, is going through the
toughest time I can remember in
my 55 years in the industry, I want
to try to ensure that the myth of
widespread huge bus company
profits is not perpetuated.”
Peter Shipp, Chairman and
Chief Executive, EYMS Group
July 2016
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August 2016
11
news
New buses and routes for Perrymans
West Coast Motors-owned
Pe r r y m a n’s B u s e s ha s
launched three routes to
serve the areas of Hawick
(service H1/H2), Selkirk,
Bannerfield and Galashiels
(service 73), Oxton and Earlston (service 61). Four new
ADL Enviro200s have joined
the fleet representing an
investment of £500,000.
Perryman’s Buses currently runs local bus services in the Scottish Borders,
East Lothian and parts of
the north of England. It has
depots located in St Boswells
and Berwick-upon-Tweed.
The new E200s have 33
seats with seatbelts, improved
lighting and audio CCTV.
A range of customised loyalty
tickets have been designed for
each of the services, including
Hawick unlimited day travel
from £2.60 and Selkirk 10-journey tickets from £12.80.
“The response to our arrival
has been terrific and we look
forward to delivering safe, reliable, affordable and greener
travel to our customers in the
Borders,” says Nicola Morrison, deputy managing director
of West Coast Motors. “The
long term success of the routes
ultimately depends on residents using the services.”
Local councillor Stuart
Marshall, Hawick Provost,
adds: “We are delighted to
welcome Perryman’s Buses
to Hawick. The company
has not only stepped in and
offered a replacement bus
service in Hawick following
First’s withdrawal, they have
also invested in new vehicles
on the route.”
www.perrymansbuses.co.uk
Nicola Morrison, West Coast Motors;
Gordon Edgar and councillor
Stuart Marshall.
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July 2016
news
Wrightbus extends electric options with
new 10.6m StreetAir EV DF
Wrightbus’ new StreetAir EV DF.
Wrightbus has launched a
new electric bus which is based
on its StreetDeck chassis and will
be the future platform for single- and double-deck variants at
10.6m lengths. The StreetAir EV
DF (door forward) is an 18tonne
plug-in vehicle and joins the 9.5m
StreetAir EV WF (wheel forward)
which has recently been on a demonstration tour in Europe and was
first shown on the Wrights Group
stand at Euro Bus Expo in 2012; it
has since undergone two driveline
upgrades.
Both the StreetAir EV WF and
StreetAir EV DF models will be
available with three main charging options - overnight (plug-in),
inductive (as used on the Milton
Keynes trial) and conductive (pantograph) charging.
The StreetAir EV WF is available in lengths from 8.8m to 9.5m
in wheel forward format. Featuring the Siemens ELFA 2 electric
drive system, the StreetAir EV WF
used on the demonstration tour of
July 2016
European operators is the ‘plug-in’
version, with overnight charging
providing 150 miles, or 18 hours
of service per day, according to
Wrightbus.
Versions of both vehicles will
be part of a demonstration programme which will run throughout 2016 and 2017, with series
production due to start in 2017.
“At Wrightbus we have committed ourselves to the design of
cleaner, greener buses and have
been at the forefront of electric bus
technology for more than a decade
now,” says William Wright , who
heads up the alternative driveline
division at Wrightbus. “Our team
is highly knowledgeable with classleading expertise in the techniques
of electric vehicle development.
“Our philosophy is to provide
a range of fully flexible products,
particularly in relation to the
charging methodology, while built
on standard product platforms.
This way, the customer can decide
which type of technology and for-
mat best suits their requirements
and those of the location in which
they operate, rather than being
dictated by us, the manufacturer.
Our team are able to advise and
support them to create a bespoke
offering which is specifically tailored to their individual requirements and operations.”
Ian Downie, Wrightbus managing director, sales, welcomed the
recent announcement of OLEV
funding for low carbon buses:
“We very much welcome the Government’s initiative to promote
greener buses and are pleased
to learn the details of the recent
results announcement.
“The investment is not only
good for the environment, it is
also driving innovation across the
industry.
“We are in discussions with
OLEV winning authorities and
operators, and placement of any
orders with us will be announced
in due course upon completion.”
www.wrightsgroup.com
13
news
Watchdog calls for action on
London bus speeds and reliability
London TravelWatch has
called for improvements in
London bus performance
after reviewing data from
Transport for London that
shows bus speeds have
deteriorated on 158 routes by
more than five per cent, with
28 routes seeing a decline of
more than 10 per cent.
London TravelWatch points
out that the deterioration
in performance varies from
route to route and is closely
aligned with patronage. In
2015/16 there were 71 million fewer bus journeys than
in 2014/15, a year-on-year
decline of 3 per cent.
Lost patronage could be
worth £200million or more
in fares revenue over the
period of TfL’s business plan,
according to the passengers’
watchdog.
“This is a ver y worr ying picture,” says Stephen
Locke, London TravelWatch
chair. “Bus service performance has deteriorated and
passengers are abandoning
bus services in significant
numbers.
“In the short term a top priority is for TfL and the London boroughs (which control
80 per cent of the roads our
buses use) to extend the
operational times of bus
lanes, and to enforce yellow
and red line controls.”
www.londontravelwatch.org.uk
Gas, electric, hybrid and fuel cell
buses backed by £30million grant
The delayed announcement
of the award of £30million
from the Low Emission Bus
Scheme for clean bus technology was made this week with
transport minister Andrew
Jones confirming support for
a total of 13 bids for 326 new
buses and infrastructure support. The announcement was
originally due to be made in
January but was held up due
to ongoing discussions with
the EU regarding state aid
rules.
The biggest grant of £5million goes to Transport for
London for 34 electric buses,
while
Merseytravel is to receive
just under £5million for more
than double the number of
vehicles with 72 biomethane, electric and hybrid
buses, including £280,000 for
infrastructure.
Nottingham City Transport is also a big winner with
14 £4.4million for 53 biomethane
buses, including £1.5million
for infrastructure.
Nottingham City Transport
says it will invest £12.4million
on top of the Low Emission
Bus Scheme award and install
gas fuelling facilities at its Parliament Street Garage.
NCT says the first of 53
Scania/ADL gas buses will
be in operation by this time
next year.
Reading Buses is also
investing in gas buses with 16
double-decks due to join its
existing 34-strong gas powered fleet following an award of
£1.7million towards the buses
and infrastructure. Reading
had previously announced an
order in April for five doubledeck gas buses from Scania/
ADL in a deal that it said at the
time did not involve any public
subsidy.
Meanwhile Birmingham
city council and Transport for
Andrew Jones, transport minister.
London are to introduce 42
hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in
a bid worth £3.8million.
“Greener buses are good
for passengers and good
for British business,” says
Jones.
“Low emission buses have
already proved to be a real
success across the country.
They are cost efficient, good
for the environment, and
there are wider benefits. ”
www.gov.uk
July 2016
news
Blackpool launches latest Palladium
buses with arrival of ten E400 Citys
Blackpool Transport has
launched ten new ADL Enviro400
City buses at a stakeholder event in
the town this month.
The buses, which are the first
of their kind in the UK outside of
London, represent a £2.2million
investment and build on the
£1.7million investment made in
ten new buses in 2015.
Blackpool Transport says it aims
to have all its buses no older than
five years by 2020.
The new Palladium branding
and livery was designed in collaboration between Blackpool
Transport and JR Buzz. The new
buses feature E-Leather seats,
wood-effect f looring, free wi-fi
and USB charging points on the
lower deck, along with next-stop
audio announcements.
“A vital part of our transport
plans is the modernisation of our
bus fleet and the introduction of
next-generation, low emission
vehicles,” says Jane Cole, managing director, Blackpool Transport. “That journey has taken
another significant step forward
with the launch of these 10 ADL
Enviro400 City buses today and
New Enviro400 Citys in Palladium livery.
our collaboration with ADL has
allowed us to create a specific
design for our customers, our
drivers and will attract non-bus
users too.”
www.blackpooltransport.co.uk
UTG welcomes new secretary
of state for transport
The appointment of Chris Grayling as the new transport secretary
has been welcomed by the Urban
Transport Group which called on
him to continue down the devolution road. While the future of the
Chris Grayling, transport secretary.
July 2016
Department for Transport was in
some doubt in the midst of Theresa
May’s reshuffle, it appears to have
survived unscathed with leading
Brexiteer Grayling put in charge.
“We look forward to working
with new secretary of state, Chris
Grayling, as we deliver the transport investment programmes
that our cities need,” says Urban
Transport Group chair Jon Lamonte. “We believe that there are
two main priorities for urban
transport; the first is investment
and the second is devolution.
“Our major cities and city
regions are drivers of the national
economy and as such need transport networks that support their
economic growth as well as give
them better connectivity with each
other and the wider world. This
means we need to ensure that there
is stable and sustained long term
investment in transport to create
an environment where commerce
and industry can have confidence
that the transport links they need
will be there.
“Our ability to ensure that available funding is best targeted has
been underpinned by a process
of devolution of transport powers
in recent years. It’s vital that this
process continues as local transport planning is best determined
by local decision making.”
www.urbantransportgroup.org
15
Analysis
Steve Rooney reports
Daimler demonstrates a bus that drives itself,
operating on a live route in Amsterdam.
Look, no hands
Semi-autonomous Citaro in action on Line 300 in Amsterdam.
Driverless buses could be a reality by the early
part of the next decade, according to Daimler, which
launched its Future Bus concept in Amsterdam last
month. The Future Bus is based on a remodelled
Citaro, conventionally-powered, but with driverless
technology that enables it to operate semi-autonomously.
Before you get too excited, driverless in this context doesn’t mean there isn’t a driver. There is a cab, a
steering wheel, pedals - and a human driver. But the
16 bus is capable of operating by itself, courtesy of Daimler’s new CityPilot system that has been developed
from its existing HighwayPilot that has already been
trialled in trucks.
The Future Bus is now being tested on a live bus
route, albeit one that operates partly on a semi-protected busway, linking Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport
to Haarlem.The Airport Line 300 is claimed to be
continued page 17
➜
Analysis
The autonomous system enables close contact with kerbs at bus stops.
Europe’s longest Bus Rapid Transit route with a total
length of 37.8km and carrying 125,000 passengers a
day.
The Future Bus is capable of travelling autonomously on the route at up to 70km per hour, guided
by a combination of camera systems, radar and GPS.
The route is a challenging test for a semi-autonomous
bus since it crosses a number of road junctions and
tunnel sections with the latter meaning that the bus
must navigate on cameras alone.
The vehicle communicates directly with the traffic
signalling network, as well as recognising speciallyadapted traffic lights which show a pair of red lights
to indicate ‘stop’ and a pair or white lights for ‘go’.
Daimler reports that CityPilot has been evolved
from the HighwayPilot system that it launched two
years ago for heavy trucks operating on trunk routes.
However, the CityPilot version has to cope with many
more potential hazards and obstructions in busy
urban areas, and particularly needs to avoid pedestrians and other traffic which may cross a vehicle’s path
unexpectedly.
Under Netherlands law, the driver on the Future
Bus on test has to put their hands onto the steering
wheel if there is oncoming traffic, and he or she can
take over the controls at any time.
August 2016
The design concept for the bus has a built-in system to indicate whether the bus is being driven by
the driver or autonomously, with blue lighting for the
latter both inside and out, and white when the driver
is in full control.
Daimler is firmly targeting BRT-type systems
for its innovation, stating that it is ideal for autonomous driving. CityPilot has four short-range radar
sensors and a long-range radar which detects at distances up to 200m. Special ‘mirrorcams’ are fitted to
the A-pillars and two lane-tracking cameras are also
used, alongside two stereo cameras with a 50m range
which allow 3D vision and recognition of obstacles
and pedestrians.
The stereo cameras are positioned high above
the front axles and the vehicle compares the images
with those pre-stored in its memory. The GPS enables the vehicle to be positioned at an accuracy of
eight centimetres, according to Daimler, including
the ability to pull in very close to the kerb at bus
stops.
The semi-autonomous system also controls the
operation of the passenger doors; two double-width
doors are fitted in the centre of the Future Bus
continued page 18
➜
17
Analysis
rather than the traditional arrangement of one at
the front and rear.
Once inside, the passenger is confronted with
a striking interior that makes clear this is a proof
of concept bus, rather than necessarily a practical people-mover. Daimler’s designers have gone to
town – literally – by using elements of urban park
designs to create curved bench seating and handrails and roof lights that are meant to conjure up
the image of leaves on trees in an urban park.
It is an impressive illusion and makes you feel
a little sad that it is unlikely to make it into the
eventual road-ready designs, although there are
evident similarities with the pioneering thinking
that operators like Reading Bus are expressing in
its similarly-named Bus of the Future concept vehicle.
“City buses play an important role in public transit systems today,” says Hartmut Schick, head of
Striking interior in City Pilot concept bus.
18 Daimler Buses, “and they can play an even more
important role tomorrow.
“A recent study shows that public transport could
be used for almost half of the routes travelled in cities,
but is currently used for only 15 per cent. So there’s
much room for improvement.
“The Mercedes-Benz Future Bus with CityPilot
once again demonstrates our leading role in the bus
business. The advantages of CityPilot for our customers are clear; only Future Bus operates fuel efficiently
and with minimal stress on the engine. This has a
positive impact on operating and maintenance costs,
vehicle lifetime and availability.”
And that is the nub of Daimler’s drive towards
autonomous vehicles; it asserts that a driverless system can be more efficient than one under human
control.
continued page 19
➜
Analysis
“It’s always braking, accelerating and shifting gears
in an optimum manner,” says Wolfgang Bernhard,
Daimler Truck and Bus board member. “This technology never gets tired, it never gets distracted. Day
or night, it’s always 100 per cent on.”
But Daimler stresses that the model is semi-autonomous, not completely driverless; the driver is always
monitoring the system and can take over the controls
at any time. Of course, there might be some, particularly in the UK’s commercialised bus industry, who
might wish for a transition to fully driverless buses as
a logical conclusion of the changes that started with
getting rid of conductors some decades ago. But others with a stronger customer-facing interest, might be
glad to hear that there is still a human at the helm; try
getting a computerised system to smile at you.
And with the launch coming shortly after the Nice
terrorist attack, there were inevitable questions put
to the Daimler team about the possibility of hacking
into an autonomous system. During the launch workshops, the response dismissed this as an impossibility,
but with security forces across Europe now undoubtedly looking at the potential use of large vehicles as
terrorist weapons, one imagines that there will need
to be a rather more forthright answer before such
technology gets anywhere near serial production.
Daimler is not always the first to launch technologies, often preferring a steady-eddy approach to
ensure that whatever it promises can be produced on
an industrial scale for its worldwide markets. With its
Future Bus however, Daimler is positioning itself as a
pioneer. The impressive concept vehicle is not necessarily what will eventually emerge, but this initiative
is likely to spawn offshoots that may deploy elements
of the autonomous guidance system in the next generation of vehicles rather than a fully- or even semidriverless bus.
www.daimler.com
Daimler estimates that serial production of autonomous
buses is possible at the beginning of the next decade.
19
Analysis – Ensign Bus
Francis Rooney reports
Ensign has revealed its BCI-built high-capacity doubledecks along with plans for further hybrid innovations.
New Chinese-built
Ensign Enterprise
Bus operator and dealer Ensign Bus is now UK
importer for manufacturer BCI – an Australian based
company which also manufactures in China. The first
BCI buses to enter the UK via Ensign were unveiled at
Ensign’s facility in Essex last month.
The Ensign Enterprise, a high capacity 12.5m-long
double-deck bus, is powered by Euro 6 Cummins
engines, and is fully PSVAR- and ULEZ-compliant.
The buses have capacity for 98 passengers with seatbelts throughout.
The collaboration between Ensign and BCI has
involved the technical teams of both companies, with
the vehicles built entirely to Ensign’s specifications by
20 BCI. Modifications made to the original BCI vehicle
included a complete redesign of the front profile, and
the inclusion of a curved staircase as opposed to a
straight one. “We had them built for what we need,”
says Ensign’s Peter Newman, “though BCI are very
accommodating, if you want changes and if it’s possible, they’ll do it.”
BCI is an Australian-owned enterprise, and BCI
Hong Kong is the part of the company working out
of China where the new Ensign-imported buses will
be built. BCI was founded by Ron Nazzari in 1991 as
continued page 21
➜
August 2016
Analysis – Ensign Bus
a small family-run business in Perth, where the head
office is still based. For the first decade of its existence
it mainly operated in Australia, with a stint building
in Malaysia.
In 2004 the first Chinese factory was set up and
BCI has been building there ever since. In 2011, a
new factory was purpose-built in Xiamen, boasting a
100,000 sq m site with a 35,000 sq m factory where the
buses for Ensign will be built.
BCI has an extensive product range, including
coaches, double-deck and single-deck buses that are
used on routes around Australia and more recently
in New Zealand.
“This is not a Chinese bus, it’s an Australian bus or
a UK bus or a New Zealand bus, just manufactured
in China,” stresses Mark Nazzari, son of BCI founder
Ron Nazzari.
Meanwhile Vantage Power, a business partner of
Ensign has developed a retrofit hybrid system and
demonstrated this alongside the BCI launch.
The B320 Hybrid Retrofit is based on a series
hybrid architecture and comes with a Cummins Euro
5 engine, which allows an engine-off mode in which
the bus can run for 4km on electric power, according
to Vantage.
At the outset it will be made available for the Volvo
B7TL, and soon be adapted to the B9TL and later
ADL’s E400. Post-installation, Vantage aims to lease
August 2016
battery packs to operators for a monthly fee with a
warranty, to address any concerns about confidence
in battery life for hybrid systems.
“The system is fully modular, and the different
parts are fully removable to allow quick and flexible
maintenance of the system,” says Vantage’s Alexander
Schey. “The whole system is designed to be as ‘plug
and play’ as possible.”
A full remote diagnostic system will be installed in
each bus allowing for geo-fencing and remote telemetry.
Initially founded in 2011 by current chief executive Alexander Schey and chief technical officer Toby
Schulz, Vantage started out working on electric racing
cars and with the help of a partnership with Ensign
Bus, has moved into working on hybrid systems for
diesel buses. Ensign, BCI and Vantage have begun
discussions about bringing a hybrid version of the
new Ensign Enterprise bus to the UK in the future.
By the end of the year Ensign also hopes to bring
10.8m double-deck buses to the UK from BCI; and
although Ensign will offer some of these buses
through its dealership operation, it says it does not
have plans to put a huge amount onto the market.
Peter Newman also ruled out bringing any BCIbuilt coaches into the country, stating that the market
was already overcrowded.
www.ensignbus.com
21
international
Bus and coach news from around the world
Malta
New fleet of Otokar Kent
Cs for Malta
M a lta Public Tra nspor t
has taken delivery of 33 new
Otokar Kent C buses, adding to
143 Vectio Cs which arrived in
September 2015, bringing the
Otokar fleet to 176 units on the
island.
The 9m-long Vectio C buses
provided flexibility to manoeuvre through narrow Maltese
roads, but the new 12m-long
Kent Cs provide additional carrying capacity for the busiest
routes. The 33 Kent C righthand-drive buses are fully airconditioned, and accessible to
all passengers with a low floor
structure, and are powered by
six-cylinder Cummins ISB Euro
6 engines.
“We are proud to say that
Malta now has one of the
youngest bus fleets in Europe,
with an average age of just over
three years, while the average
Malta Public Transport takes 33 Otokar Kent C buses.
in Europe is over nine years,” says
Felipe Cosmen, chairman, Malta
Public Transport. “Almost half of
our fleet is now less than one year
old, with Euro 6 engines. We are
setting new standards for environmentally-friendly transport
and contributing to cleaner air.”
Joe Mizzi, minister for transport
and infrastructure, who attended
the launch event adds: “Nowadays,
people expect to get on a comfortable bus and get to their destination
on time. Throughout the past two
years, we have taken major steps to
ensure that this can be achieved.
This includes the introduction
of new routes and modification
in others, the introduction of the
tallinja card which has helped
reduce boarding time, and as a
consequence, journey time has
decreased as well.
“We have also seen the introduction of priority lanes and
the new buses having two doors
which further help reduce
boarding and alighting times.
The addition of these new
buses will see seating capacity
increase considerably.”
www.otokar.com
Europe
IRU offers cautious welcome for EU transport decarbonisation strategy
The IRU has welcomed the
publication of the European
Commission’s new transport
decarbonisation strategy, which
includes a stronger commitment
to the greening of buses, coaches
and trucks.
The Commission has outlined several ongoing initiatives
and proposed new measures for
the European transport sector’s contribution to the general
decarbonisation target, as agreed
last year at COP21 in Paris. The
measures concentrate largely
on road transport and the IRU
has repeatedly called on indus-
22 try partners, EU institutions and
member states to give a higher priority to greener heavy commercial
vehicles.
Marc Billiet, who leads IRU’s
work on the environment in the
EU, says: “Transport operators are
willing to decarbonise if it leads to
additional cost savings which can
be reinvested in their businesses.
“Indeed, it is important to
provide real business incentives
for road transport operators to
accelerate the market uptake of
the latest and cleanest innovative
transport technologies, best practices and training.
“Facilitating better informed
investment decisions based on
environmental performance
could help them in this respect.”
The IRU calls on the European Commission to wait before
it includes bus and coach services in an EU road pricing and
external cost framework. “The
Commission should first produce sound scientific evidence
indicating whether or not this
sector is insufficiently contributing before a decision is taken
on who should pay how much,
where and how,” adds the IRU.
www.iru.org
August 2016
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August 2016
23
international
Russia
FuelSense technology helps Russian bus fleet reduce fuel consumption
NefAZ bus trial for Allison’s FuelSense.
A l l ison Tr a n s m i s s i on s
reports that a trial by Public
Transport Enterprise No. 4, a
300-strong bus fleet in Kazan,
Russia, that compared buses
equipped with an automated
manual transmission (AMT)
and one equipped with an
Allison transmission featuring
FuelSense Max, has resulted
in the Allison-equipped bus
returning a f uel economy
improvement of 11 per cent.
The bus used in the test on a
city route was a Cummins-powered NefAZ З5299-30-32 with
223,045km on the clock, which
had been converted to a fully
automatic Allison T310R transmission, with FuelSense Max
package. FuelSense comprises
a combination of software and
electronic controls designed to
improve fuel economy.
“During two days of test-
24 ing, the bus with the Allison
transmission made eight rounds
daily (309km total), consuming 112 litres of fuel,” say Ruslan Suleymanov, deputy service
and warranty director for Public Transport Enterprise No. 4.
“The test showed that the Allison
transmission provides a daily fuel
reduction of 16 litres. On average,
fuel consumption decreased from
41 to 37 litres per 100 km.
“The Allison transmission
only requires an oil change every
240,000 km and a filter change
every 120,000 km. With similar
mileage, the buses equipped with
the standard automatic transmission require two oil and filter
changes.”
Suleymanov points to another
advantage with Allison’s prognostics system that monitors
key diagnostics and provides the
driver with in-vehicle alerts and
helps eliminates unnecessary
oil and filter changes, providing additional cost savings.
“The shift selector digitally
displays key data, including oil
level and status and a lot more,
which is very convenient for the
bus driver and maintenance
specialists,” he adds. “Furthermore, drivers reported that the
NefAZ bus with the Allison is
much more comfortable.”
Public Transport Enterprise
No 4 is one of the oldest public
transport enterprises in Kazan.
It employs around 783 people,
of which 413 are drivers. The
enterprise operates a f leet of
304 buses from various OEMs
with 273 buses operating on 23
regular city routes. Kazan is the
capital city of Tatarstan and lies
820km to the east of Moscow.
www.kazan-patp4.ru
www.allisontransmission.com
August 2016
international
Germany
Voith to focus on fuel efficient operation at Hanover show
Voith’s display at this year’s
IAA Commercial Vehicles,
which runs from 22-29 September in Hanover will include the
DIWA.6 automatic transmission
with Stop-Start Technology, a
version of its secondary water
retarder that can be disconnected, and new air compressors
with TwinSave technology or
coupling.
Voith reports that its StopStart technology is now “ready
for the road”, pointing out that
city buses in regular operation
spend up to 40 per cent of their
operating time in idling mode
due to bus stops, red lights and
heavy traffic. This translates into
unnecessary fuel consumption
while also increasing pollution
and noise emissions, according
to Voith, which has extended the
features of its DIWA.6 automatic
transmission with Stop-Start
functionality so that bus operators
can increase the profitability of
their vehicles while also providing
added value for the environment.
The DIWA.6 is capable of stop
times up to 60 seconds , and
depending on the duty cycle, this
enables fuel savings of 5-10 per
cent. More than 100 buses have
been using DIWA.6 Stop-Start in
the UK for more than a year.
Voith is also highlighting its
secondary water retarder (SWR) at
the Hanover show. The SWR was
designed as a secondary retarder
for buses and trucks. It brakes with
water and uses the engine coolant
so it does not need any additional
operating medium and handles up
to 90 per cent of vehicle braking,
wear-free, according to Voith.
The retarder technology is also
designed to encourage the driver
to improve anticipation which,
in conclusion, reduces fuel consumption. There can be energy
losses – even if no continuous
braking power is used – due to
the constantly moving rotor.
However, by adding a coupling,
Voith has enabled disconnection
of the rotor from the driveline
so that when the retarder is not
required, no power is consumed.
The disconnecting capability
further reduces fuel consumption and CO2 emissions of the
vehicle.
The Voith stand will also feature a prototype of the new LP
560 air compressor equipped
with TwinSave technology. An
additional control valve in the
second compressor stage permits additional energy savings
when idling as well as a closed
pressure line with an external
control.
In applications requiring a
drive-through option on the
air compressor, savings of
up to 25 per cent can be
achieved, says Voith.
www.voith.com/iaa-en
DIWA.6 fitted with Stop-Start technology.
August 2016
25
international
Netherlands
VDL Bus & Coach introduces the Citea LLE Electric
The recently-introduced new
length variant of the VDL Citea
LLE, the Citea LLE-99, is now
also available in a fully electric
version.
The development of the VDL
Citea LLE Electric complements
the existing Citea SLF Electric
for standard city transport and
the articulated SLFA Electric.
The Citea LLE-99 Electric now
also provides a solution for city
and regional bus lines with lower
passenger numbers, according to
VDL.
The Citea LLE-99 Electric has a
150kw electric motor and 180kwh
battery pack. In common with the
LLE, the kerb weight remains very
low, says VDL. It is also possible
to optimise operational use with
the installation of a pantograph
system, in addition to the standard charging connector, allowing
rapid charging at up to 270kw.
VDL Bus & Coach says that it
is convinced that its continuous
development and expansion of
the Citea Electric range will help
meet the demand for zero emission public transport in the very
near future. “By continuously
optimising the electric powertrain options and battery packs,
this future will be clean, quiet
and efficient as far as VDL Bus
& Coach is concerned,” says a
spokesperson.
www.vdlbuscoach.com
New VDL Citea LLE-99 Electric.
26 August 2016
people
For all the latest vacancies visit – www.busandcoach.com
there is no doubt that I shall miss
the cut and thrust of the public
inquiry room as well as attending
stakeholder events.”
www.gov.uk/trafficcommissioners
North Scotland in May 2013.
“I am delighted to be taking
on this role and I look forward to
working with the Stagecoach team
in the north east, and our many
local partners, to continue delivering high-quality, affordable bus
travel and excellent customer service for the millions of people that
rely on our services every day,”
says Walker.
Stagecoach is currently recruiting for the position of managing
director, North Scotland.
www.stagecoach.com
Beverley Bell.
Beverley Bell to step down as
senior traffic commissioner
Beverley Bell will step down as
senior traffic commissioner next
spring following a one-year extension to her appointment. Bell, who
will also leave her post as north
west traffic commissioner, says
the forthcoming reforms of fees
and legislation should be taken
forward under new leadership.
“Over the past four years, traffic commissioners have dealt with
a range of significant issues arising
in the operator licensing regime but
there is still more to be done,” says
Bell. “Over the next 12 months we
will concentrate on continuing to
deliver our key objectives of reducing the burden on the compliant
industry and targeting the serially
and seriously non-compliant to
ensure our twin objectives of the
promotion of road safety and fair
competition.
“As part of my decision to continue as STC for another year, I
have informed the Department
for Transport that I do not intend
to seek reappointment as STC in
Spring 2017. I also intend to step
down from my post as traffic commissioner for the north west of
England at the same time.
“Since my appointment as TC
I have thoroughly enjoyed every
aspect of this important role and
August 2016
Steve Walker.
Walker appointed Stagecoach
North East MD
Stagecoach has appointed
current Stagecoach North Scotland
managing director Steve Walker
as its new managing director of its
North East bus operations. Walker
will take on the role from 12 September 2016, while in the interim,
the business will continue to be
managed by Clare Kavanagh, strategy director, Stagecoach UK Bus.
Stagecoach announced last
month that former Stagecoach
North East managing director Phil
Medlicott had decided to leave the
company.
Stagecoach North East operates local bus services in Newcastle, South Shields, Sunderland,
Hartlepool and Teesside, and has
more than 1,400 employees, with
around 470 buses carrying 63 million passengers a year.
Walker worked in the bus industry in Manchester before joining
Stagecoach East Scotland in 2001.
He took on the role of managing
director, Stagecoach Highlands
in June 2010 and was appointed
managing director of Stagecoach
Matt Kitchin.
Matt Kitchin leaves Go
Ahead’s south coast for
Stagecoach Manchester
Southern Vectis and Bluestar
general manager Matt Kitchin is
leaving the company to become
operations director with Stagecoach Manchester.
Kitchin joined the Hampshireand Isle of Wight-based firms, part
of Go South Coast, in November
2012.
“We’d like to congratulate Matt
on his promotion to operations
director with Stagecoach Manchester - the operator’s largest UK
bus subsidiary outside of London,”
says Southern Vectis and Bluestar
managing director Andrew Wickham.
“Matt has worked hard to build
27
people
an excellent reputation, both for
himself and for the operators he
has managed whilst with us here
on the south coast. It is testament
to this - and the excellent development and support he received
from his colleagues here that he
has secured this new position.”
“It has been a privilege and a
pleasure to lead two very highly
regarded bus companies through
some challenging times over the
past few years,” adds Kitchin. “I
am particularly proud of our partnership working with local stakeholders to retain, and in some
cases expand our networks, in the
face of cut backs. I leave behind
two fantastic teams who I have no
doubt will continue the good work
long after I have left.”
www.bluestarbus.co.uk
www.stagecoach.com
five years, having begun his career
at Leyland Vehicles before joining
the then London Buses organisation for four years.
In 1988 he joined Dennis Specialist Vehicles where he later
became design team manager. He
spent two years as engineering
manager at Thomas Dennis LLC,
a joint venture between Mayflower
Corporation and DaimlerChrysler
before moving back to Guildford
in 2001. Between 2002 and 2010 he
held a variety of senior engineering
positions at ADL, including both
engineering manager and head of
chassis development.
“Mike Kerslake brings a wealth
of experience to BYD at a time
when we are on the threshold of
tremendous growth in the British bus market via our partnership with ADL,” says Isbrand Ho,
managing director, BYD Europe.
“We have a host of exciting and
innovative products to launch in
the short term and Mike will play a
key role in bringing them into the
industry.”
www.byd.com
strategy development and governance.
He was secretary of state for
business innovation and skills in
the coalition government from
2010 to 2015, and MP for Twickenham from 1997, having previously
had a business career including
serving as Chief Economist at Shell
International.
“I am a great believer in the
potential of social enterprise to create social justice, using business to
address the pressing social issues
of our times,” says Cable. “HCT
Group exemplifies this, competing
in its markets and striving to make
a positive social impact – which is
why I am so excited about my new
role. ”
Dai Powell, HCT chief executive
adds: “At a time when our commercial environment is changing
rapidly, Sir Vince not only brings a
deep understanding of the political
landscape and experience of industry, but also a real commitment to
the values of the organisation as a
social enterprise. We have ambitious plans for the future and I
look forward to working with him
in the months and years ahead.”
www.hctgroup.org
London bus staff recognised
at awards night
Mike
people369_4
Kerslake.
BYD strengthens UK operation
with Kerslake appointment
BYD UK has appointed Mike Kerslake to the newly-created position
of technical manager to oversee
the entry into service of new fleets
of BYD buses for Go-Ahead Group
and Nottingham county council.
Kerslake joins BYD after almost
30 years’ service with Alexander
Dennis and its predecessor companies. He was until recently ADL
group technology manager based
at Guildford, a position he held for
28 Vince Cable.
Vince Cable to take over
as HCT chair
Social enterprise bus operator
HCT Group has appointed Vince
Cable as its new chair. Cable will
be responsible for leading the
board of trustees and overseeing
The London Bus Awards took
place last month, celebrating the
successes and achievements of
staff in the capital, including individuals who acted well beyond the
call of duty.
Leon Daniels, Tf L managing
director of surface transport, who
hosted the event in Southwark,
says: “The Capital’s red buses are
the life blood of the city and play
a significant role in keeping it
working and growing.
“It is thanks to the day-in dayout pride and hard work of our
staff, both in the driver’s seat and
those in the garages whom the
August 2016
people
public don’t see, that we meet this
challenge.”
The awards were presented
by Val Shawcross, deputy mayor
for transport, Caroline Pidgeon,
chair of the London Assembly transport committee, Mike
Brown, transport commissioner
and Gareth Powell, Transport for
London director of strategy and
contracted services.
The winners at this year’s London Bus Awards included James
Rossi, Arriva London (Watford
Garage), who responded to an
incident involving a 17-year-old
boy suffering a severe allergic
reaction who needed to get his
EpiPen from home. Calling for
medical assistance would have
taken too long, so Rossi used his
PA system to explain the situation to his passengers and took
the teenager directly to a bus stop
close to his home. A few weeks
later, the teenager’s mother called
the garage, and said her son would
have died without James’ help.
Patience Okezie, Arriva London (Brixton Garage) was also
honoured for her supportive role
with colleagues, and James Barlow, Go-Ahead London (Bexleyheath Garage) was singled out as
outstanding newcomer.
Stagecoach London were named
Environmental Campaign Champion for their contribution which
included a ‘big switch off ’ that led
to a 30 per cent long-term energy
reduction since 2012, and a reduction of 60 per cent in daily water
use at the depot by not washing
the vehicles for one night.
www.tfl.gov.uk
Long service recognition at Stagecoach North East
Long service award winners at Stagecoach North East.
Stagecoach North East has
recognised 66 employees who have
accumulated 2,290 years of service
between them in its latest annual
long service awards.
A celebration dinner and awards
ceremony at The Hilton Hotel,
Gateshead involved bus drivers,
engineers, administration and
management staff based at Stagecoach North East’s depots across
Hartlepool, Teesside, Newcastle,
Sunderland and South Shields.
Among the recipients of awards
were Trevor Best, senior duty manager at the Hartlepool depot, has
August 2016
worked for the company for the
past 40 years. “I enjoy everything
about my job but especially the
comradeship we have at work,”
says Best who joined as a driver in
1976, and became a duty manager
in 1984. “It’s a very varied role and
I did miss the passengers to begin
with but I’m still involved today
dealing with customers in reception.
“As part of my role I also go
into schools in Hartlepool to talk
about bus safety and do practice
job interviews. I find that people
often remember me from when
they were a child from school visits.”
Jason Astley, Stagecoach North
East Hartlepool operations manager, adds: “Trevor is a star who is
a really dedicated member of the
team who makes things happen.
The fact that staff still thrive on
the challenges that their jobs give
them after so many years of working for the company is a wonderful endorsement of the efforts they
have made, and continue to make,
to help shape and develop the company.”
www.stagecoachbus.com/northeast
29
people
Use the Professional
option to fill your vacancy.
Bus and Coach Professional
first for recruitment
Rosa Williams.
New marketing manager for
South Wales
Stagecoach in South Wales
has promoted Rosa Williams from
marketing assistant to marketing manager. Rosa has been with
Stagecoach in South Wales for
nearly four years, having previously held posts with Amlin Insurance, as well as teaching English in
London and Condé Nast Publications.
Reporting to Stagecoach in
South Wales managing director Nigel Winter, Williams will
be responsible for delivering the
marketing strategies across South
Wales to encourage people to leave
their cars at home, contribute to a
healthier environment and travel
with Stagecoach.
“I would like to congratulate
Rosa on her appointment and look
forward to working with her,”
says Winter. “Her previous experience will provide an excellent
foundation as she takes on more
responsibility for other parts of
our business. We will be working
hard to attract even more people
on to our greener, smarter bus
services”.
Call Jo now on
01694 731510
for details.
www.stagecoachgroup.com
30 August 2016
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31
diary
Alexander Pemberton’s Diary
Cheaper bus fares when it rains in Cornwall
First Kernow supervisor Phil Shortt gets ready for the launch of First Kernow’s Rainy Day ticket offer.
First Kernow has taken the brave
step of betting against the weather
with a plan to halve fares when it
rains. New Rainy Day Tickets are
being offered when there is rain
falling, anything from a light
drizzle to a monsoon, according
to First.
The promotional price for day
tickets valid on all First Kernow
public buses will be £6 for adults,
£3 for children and £12 for a family group (up to 2 adults and an
unlimited number of children),
available from the driver.
Initially, the Rainy Day ticket
32 offer will run throughout the peak
summer time from Sunday 24 July
to Saturday 3 September.
“The one thing we cannot
predict during the summer is
the weather,” says Marc Morgan
Huws, First Kernow business
director. “Traditionally, people don’t venture out when the
weather is poor and don’t travel
on our buses. We’re giving locals
and tourists alike an extra incentive to get and about Cornwall,
even if it’s raining.
“When the umbrellas are up,
the ponchos are on, and the wind-
screen wipers are doing ten to the
dozen, there’s still every reason to
get to the nearest bus stop and get
out and about in Cornwall.”
Huws says the driver is in control; if it’s raining, passengers can
ask for a Rainy Day Ticket.
“As well as giving our visitors
and locals something to dispel the
rainy gloom, our Rainy Day offer
should give a boost to holiday
attractions and tourist-dependent businesses across Cornwall
when the weather is against us,”
he adds.
www.firstgroup.com/cornwall
August 2016
diary
Special heritage services announced
for Lothian Buses open day
Lothian Buses is running
vintage buses on its Service 16
between Lothian Road and Newhaven for its Central Depot Doors
Open Day at Annandale Street on
Saturday 24 September.
The buses will run at least every
10 minutes between 9am and 6pm
and regular Lothian Buses fares
will be accepted on these vehicles.
“We are really excited to be able
to offer trips on vintage buses as
part of our Doors Open Day programme this year,” says Richard
Hall, managing director.
“We hope that by giving people this rare opportunity to travel
back in time on these special services, it will add to what is already
a very popular event in Edinburgh.”
The Doors Open Day also
includes a display of new and
vintage buses, tours around the
depot highlighting the history of
the listed building, trips onboard
double-deckers through the bus
wash, and bus ‘racing’ operated
by The Racing Bug.
Lothian Buses is using the event
to support Guide Dogs Scotland
and Poppy Scotland with donation buckets at the doors and
throughout the depot.
www.lothianbuses.co.uk
Lothian’s Central Depot Doors Open Day takes place on 24 September.
August 2016
33
diary
Smartening up Swindon’s bus station
Stagecoach Swindon assistant operations manager Richard Smith.
Stagecoach Swindon has
aimed to brighten up the town’s
bus station in the wake of building
work in the area, with a colourful display including new signage,
flower-filled baskets and planters.
“With all the building work
around us over the last few months
it’s been a bit dusty and dreary,”
says Shelley Usher, operations
manager, Stagecoach Swindon.
“We launched the project during
Green Week in June and staff have
34 been getting supplies and getting
to grips with baskets and planters to create a beautiful display
that our passengers and staff can
enjoy.
“We’ve received so many compliments and smiles from everyone
in the bus station who are enjoying a bit of colour and cheer, it just
inspires us to keep going with our
improvements.”
Rupert Cox, Stagecoach West
MD adds: “Committed as we are
to improving passenger journeys
it made sense to include the start
of their journey in our plans. We
already run a sustainable, safe
and efficient service within Swindon and throughout the glorious
countryside and towns around it
and it’s great for the passengers to
enjoy their journeys from the very
beginning at the bus station. Shelley and her team have done an outstanding job.”
www.stagecoachgroup.com
August 2016
diary
EYMS supports National Citizen
Scheme participants
A new partnership between
Tigers’ Trust and EYMS means
that more than 2,500 teenagers
in East Yorkshire, participating
in the National Citizen Scheme
will get free and discounted bus
travel.
NCS is a two- to four-week partresidential programme open to
all 16-17 year olds during school
holidays. Running throughout
England and Northern Ireland,
the programme aims to widen
horizons, bridge social divides
and create community cohesion
whilst developing key skills for
work and life. In the third phase
of the programme, participants
create a social action project in
their local communities around
an issue they are passionate about
and will spend around 30 hours
implementing it.
EYMS is offering some free bus
travel to young people involved in
the programme in its area during
the social action phase of NCS this
summer. Once a young person has
graduated from NCS, they will
be eligible for further discounted
travel with EYMS using their NCS
bus pass.
Tigers’ Trust, which is co-ordinating the local NCS programme,
is Hull City Football Club’s charitable trust, aiming to make a difference by involving people in
sport and promoting the values
linked to sporting success.
“It’s great that so many local
young people are giving up their
time to help their communi-
ties over the summer, and we’re
delighted to help them travel
around by providing them all
with some free bus journeys,” says
Claire Robinson, EYMS marketing manager. “Travelling by bus is
a great way for teenagers to travel
independently, which is why we
provide special discount cards for
16-18 year olds.”
Matt Conway, NCS project manager, adds: “It’s great to be working
with a local organisation like this
one. I believe it will really enhance
the programme and ensure that
every young person will be given
the opportunity to deliver social
action projects in the local and
surrounding community.”
www.eyms.co.uk
www.ncsyes.co.uk
EYMS backs National Citizen Scheme.
August 2016
35
product
The latest products and services for the bus and coach sector
Grayson and Zeta partnership on speed limiting
John Lawrence, Zeta Automotive and Richard Harris, Grayson Thermal Systems.
Two specialist suppliers to the
bus and coach sector have joined
forces to help operators cut emissions and reduce costs. Cooling
and heating specialist Grayson
Thermal Systems has signed an
agreement with Zeta Automotive
to market its EconoSpeed Connect product which automatically
adjusts driver acceleration for
optimum engine performance.
“It was during the development
of E-Drive when we first realised that the two companies had
products that could be integrated
together to deliver a single solution to the end user,” says Stuart
Hateley, managing director, Grayson Thermal Systems.
“The electric fan we used to
replace the power-sapping hydraulic system meant we created added
power at the f lywheel and we
needed a way to control it, which
is where EconoSpeed came into its
own.
“It quickly became clear that
there was a natural synergy
between the products, a synergy
36 that delivers reduced operating
costs, weight and noise on operator vehicles.”
Zeta Automotive’s John Lawrence adds: “Grayson’s experience in the bus and coach sector
is second to none and we are very
excited about our partnership,
possible product combinations
with EconoSpeed Connect and the
extended team of service engineers
now available to us.”
The next stage will be for
both organisations to pool their
resources and technical expertise
to identify and bring new products
to market.
“In EconoSpeed Connect, we
have got a way of controlling
driver acceleration and speed and
we want to move this to the next
level with the possibility of using
GPS mapping to adapt vehicle
speed when in certain areas,” adds
Hateley. “This means we’ll be able
to limit the bus or coach to the
maximum speed of the road it is
travelling on.”
www.graysonts.com
www.zetaautomotive.com
Eliminating squeaks with Ambla
Wardle Storeys reports that now
that more luxurious bus interiors
are required by discerning passengers, anti-squeak fabric is a must.
It claims that its Ambla Exmoor
leather-touch collection offers
excellent anti-squeak properties
with a high quality leather surface
effect.
Wardle Storeys claims to have
been the first vinyl manufacturer
to offer an effective anti-squeak
product in the market, and reports
that premium automotive brands
regularly specify Ambla in their
vehicles.
Exmoor Leather Touch is held in
stock by Wardle Storeys to ensure
that lead times are minimal.
www.ambla.com
August 2016
Reduce insurance claims
Find out how with the UK’s leading CCTV and telematics provider
“Analogue cameras are absolutely
fine. However, if you’ve ever needed
to zoom into a vehicle number plate,
or even a passenger’s face, then
you’ll appreciate the benefits that IP
can offer. We certainly wouldn’t go
back to Analogue”.
Greg Wright, Tower Transit
Call 01253 891222 | Email: [email protected] | www.synecticsmobile.com
A Winning Combination
Joining forces to boost the Bus & Coach sector
Heating, cooling, and air conditioning systems
manufacturer working in harmony with an intelligent
technology supplier to deliver the EconoSpeed Connect.
The EconoSpeed Connect aims to help bus and coach
operators reduce costs and minimise environmental
impact whilst improving passenger comfort.
t 0121 700 5610 e [email protected] w graysonts.com
August 2016
37
product
Synectics wins contract extension from Go-Ahead
Go-Ahead Group has extended
its contract with Synectics for
maintaining and supporting
CCTV solutions on the group’s
4,600-strong fleet of vehicles in
the UK.
The extended agreement will see
Synectics continue to provide surveillance systems and support for
Go-Ahead’s bus division until September 2018, taking the relationship between the two companies
to over five years.
Having initially undertaken
a f leet-wide evaluation to bring
the vehicle CCTV systems up to
standard through ongoing maintenance and upgrades, Synectics
has more recently been overseeing
and implementing major upgrade
programmes for Go-Ahead.
In addition, Synectics has
worked closely on increased integration of on-vehicle CCTV and
other critical business systems.
“Synectics has been a valuable
partner as we have undertaken significant upgrades to our fleet, both
in London and nationally, over
the last year, and we are pleased
to have their support as we push
towards technology integration
and increased use of technology
to drive value for the group,” says
Go-Ahead’s Group procurement
director Jeremy Marshall.
Jeff Fail, managing director,
Synectics mobile division, adds:
“This contract extension demonstrates our ability to meet the complex technology needs of large bus
and coach fleets. We appreciate
the trust Go-Ahead places in us to
provide a consistent, reliable and
effective service.
“As a business we have shown
transport sector expertise, extensive technical capabilities and
the ability to anticipate emerging
requirements and future innovations. We look forward to continuing this successful partnership.”
www.synecticsmobile.com
Go-Ahead extends Synectics contract for CCTV systems.
38 August 2016
Tachograph analysis software from
the undisputed market leaders
Tachomaster has processed over 320 million
days of driver data and helped thousands
of companies to analyse their tachograph
data quickly and easily.
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product
Distinctive offers LicenceCheck service within Coach Manager
Users of Distinctive Systems’
Coach Manager can now use an
integrated licence check for drivers
and customise the system based on
licence restrictions, endorsements
and qualifications to drive certain category vehicles, following a
tie-up with LicenceCheck.
Previously licence checks were
conducted manually, outside of the
software. The new driving licence
check ensures that the operator is
legally compliant and reduces risk
of corporate liability in the event of
an accident.
“Risk assessment and profiling should always be at the forefront of a duty of care policy for
any company, especially when
heavy machinery and the general public are involved,” says
LicenceCheck managing director
Richard Brown. “Distinctive Systems wanted a full source record
licence check that revealed any
flaws or convictions for the driver
on a real-time basis, thus reducing risk. LicenceCheck was able
to integrate a real-time check that
exposes any misdemeanours on
the part of a driver, ensuring that
only properly qualified and trustworthy drivers are used by Coach
Manager’s clients.”
Distinctive Systems development director Paul McJannett
adds: “We live in a digital age and
the software update provided in
partnership with LicenceCheck
gives a warning if a driver is not
qualified to drive a vehicle; either
if they don’t have a full and valid
licence, or even the correct licence
for a certain job, or if their penalty
points are over a certain threshold.
“We’re delighted to offer our
customers the most comprehensive licence checks on the market
today, which compliments the
need to secure occupants’ safety
above all else.”
www.distinctive-systems.com
www.licencecheck.co.uk
New Unicorn Underwriting insurance options from Gauntlet
Commercial insurance broker
Gauntlet is now offering its bus and
coach clients access to new policies
from Unicorn Underwriting.
As the former managing director
of the transport division at THB,
Darren Nightingale, Unicorn’s
CEO, has worked with Gauntlet
for many years, providing insurance for Gauntlet and its clients
nationwide.
Gauntlet says this relationship is
set to continue at Unicorn Underwriting, which is focusing on three
types of insurance risk – passenger-carrying vehicles, motor fleets
and haulage.
Unicorn will particularly target
small- to medium-sized familyowned coach business, where vehicles are used for school contracts,
private hire and UK tours. Gauntlet already works with many of
these businesses and can now offer
Unicorn’s new insurance solution
and quotation, to compare with
their existing arrangement.
A key consideration, according
to Gauntlet, is the claims handling
side of any insurance relationship.
Unicorn Underwriting is working with Gallagher Bassett as its
claims handler which has many
years’ experience in the sector and
understands how critical it is to
manage vehicle downtime, whilst
keeping a tight control on repair
costs.
“Gauntlet is delighted to be able
to offer its clients this new insurance option through Unicorn
Underwriting, which has become
available to us thanks to the great
relationship we have had with Darren Nightingale during his years at
THB,” says Gauntlet director Ian
McCarron. “Darren is bringing
something innovative and focused
to the bus and coach insurance
sector.”
www.busandcoachinsurance.com
Popularity of USB charge points gives Hunters a boost
Hunters Auto Electrical, based
in Southampton, reports that it has
recently completed the installation
on schedule of more than 4,000
USB charging points to a fleet of
89 buses for a major bus operator
in the south.
The company reports growing
interest from bus operators who
want USB charging systems on
40 their vehicles.
“The demand for USB charging
has snowballed over the last three
years,” says managing director
Simon Hunter, “and there is now
a huge choice of competitively
priced chargers available from
several manufacturers to suit any
application”.
Hunters have installed more
than 33,000 charge points for
operators across the UK, and offer
a complete supply-and-fit solution
or can provide an installation-only
service for any size of fleet.
“With supply-and-fit packages
from as little as £600, it has become
much more attractive to a lot more
operators,” adds Hunter.
www.haee.co.uk
August 2016
Bus and Coach Professional is the only industry
magazine to deliver professionally written and
presented features about industry products
and services.
Whatever the subject –
we’ve got it covered
busandcoach.com offers 24 hour access to the
industry’s leading news, jobs and vehicles sales.
We also have an unrivalled search facility and a
substantial archive of the best news and
features from back issues.
It’s simple – just log-on to www.busandcoach.com
For details of how to make the most
of your advertising, call Jo on
01694 731510.
August 2016
41
focus on Tachographs
Expansion programme for TruTac
TruTac is doubling the size of its existing premises in Coventry and launching
a recruitment campaign to strengthen its
expanding team.
“The last few years have seen rapid growth for
TruTac in both the HGV and PSV industry sectors,”
says TruTac managing director Terry Ramsey. “New
products and services have been introduced and
proved hugely popular. The company has worked
closely with customers old and new to provide
ever-more innovative solutions for effective compliance management and cost-efficient fleet control.” TruTac has been supported in this expansion
by local property consultancy D&P Holt Property.
Senior surveyor Nick Holt says: “As we’ve been in
business for over 20 years we are committed to a
long-term growth plan. We’re investing and building on our expertise to ensure continued success,
both for TruTac and our customers alike.”
www.trutac.co.uk
New digifobpro from Tachosys
Some operators may view the tachograph as
a costly legal obligation, but Tachosys says
its hardware designs have been able to help
operators save time, efficiently centralise
their tachograph data and to harvest valuable information.
Tachosys recently announced a new version
of its digifobpro, a hand-held tool for downloading from vehicles and driver cards and providing
42 comprehensive tachograph analysis. The new
digifobpro has a colour backlit screen, long-life
rechargeable LiPo battery and up-to-date styling.
The features include full driver card download
and on-screen analysis including infringements,
configurable vehicle download and analysis, with
graphical reporting, Bluetooth connectivity and
3GB internal storage.
www.tachosys.com August 2016
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focus on Tachographs
Plug-and-play tachograph data transfer
for new VDO DLD Wide Range II
The new VDO DLD Wide Range II from Continental aims to give fleet operators direct
access to a web-based service for the wireless transfer of data from digital tachograph
(DTCO) and from driver cards.
Described as OEM-quality, the device can be
installed in a few minutes, according to VDO, with
a plug-and-play cable and it can be deployed
immediately with an integrated SIM card for mobile
communication.
The hardware has telematics functions built-in,
including position recording and vehicle diagnostics via CAN or other inputs.
Customers also get online access to their data
without requiring the installation of applications
locally.
Continental says that coaches on trips across
Europe can now download via the DLD Wide
Range II making data management much easier
and with the added security that the company is
complying with all statutory archiving deadlines.
Data is downloaded automatically by GPRS while
the vehicle is out on the road, and the company
card stays in the office.
The new DLD II unit has a 512Mb storage capacity and additional CAN interfaces, digital inputs
and outputs, and is ready for further telematics
functions that will become available in the future,
such as the analysis of driver availability and vehicle diagnostic information.
The system is also compatible with the wi-fibased DLD Short Range II, which downloads
data from vehicles when they return to the depot,
meaning that companies can switch to the wireless version where required, or equip individual
vehicles in mixed fleets with the right device for
long-range and short-range transport jobs.
“DLD WR II augments our fine-tuned family
of digital tachographs and telematics applications with front end, back-end and apps,” says
Lutz Scholten, Continental head of tachographs,
telematics and services. “Fleet operators can
now manage their fleets more efficiently.”
www.continentalcorporation.com
Continued growth for Road Tech
Road Tech Computer Systems was established in 1984 by Derek Beevor who said
he was motivated after becoming frustrated with the lack of software available to
help run his 20-vehicle transport company
Tudor Transport. He worked with a software
designer to create the road transport software package, Roadrunner.
Road Tech now employs 85 staff and has several thousand customers for its range of software
solutions.
In 2004, two years ahead of the digital tachograph, Beevor and his programming team began
developing Tachomaster which analyses digital,
analogue and Working Time directive data for £1
per driver per week. Tachomaster was launched
in 2006, offering not just compliance, but internetbased multi-depot real-time analysis and manage-
44 ment reporting. By November 2015, Tachomaster
had analysed 80 million card, chart and vehicle
downloads.
“At Road Tech we are so confident in the power
of our software, ongoing development, back-up,
support and dedication to what we do, that unlike
our competitors, we do not ask our customers to
sign contracts before they can use our software
systems,” says a spokesperson. “The reason that
our customers remain loyal to us, is not because
they have a contract, but because we do everything that we can to exceed their expectations and
treat them with integrity. We recognise that a good
reputation is hard won, but easily lost.”
Road Tech has its head office based at Shenley
Hall in Hertfordshire with additional offices in Sydney, Australia.
www.tachomaster.co.uk
August 2016
Uniforms
Projecting a
smart image
Well-dressed staff can enhance that vital first
impression that passengers get when they
board a vehicle.
Steve Banner reports
G
iving buses a makeover with an
attractive new livery, leather seats
and free wi-fi is likely to lose much
of its impact if drivers are stuck
with threadbare old uniforms that
look as though they've been used
to line the dog's basket. Employees
need to look at least as smart as the vehicles they
operate if at all possible.
One firm that is determined to ensure that its
bus drivers reflect a professional image is Epsom
Coaches. That means a smart shirt with epaulettes
plus a tie says managing director Steve Whiteway.
"I know some operators have gone for polo
shirts but I don't think they look all that good," he
observes.
continued page 46
➜
Uniforms
Drivers can have fleeces, but shorts are a no-no,
even in hot weather, according to Whiteway, and he
actively discourages them from doing something
he says one or two of them are prone to do; getting
behind the wheel and heading off down the road
while still wearing the high-visibility vest they had
on when they were walking around the yard a few
minutes earlier.
Ties can be detachable or conventional. If a driver
chooses the latter however then Whiteway expects
to see it correctly tied, with a Windsor knot.
The Surrey-based firm's coach drivers wore
maroon blazers several years ago. More recently
however Epsom has opted for a two-piece suit, with
drivers able to opt for a waistcoat.
Ensuring that employees are kitted out in the right
sort of work-wear can involve enlisting the help of
specialist uniform suppliers, such as the Cooneen
Group. A uniform it supplies to Transport for
London created by leading fashion designer Wayne
Hemingway, picked up a Highly Commended
accolade at the Professional Clothing Awards earlier
this year.
Other suppliers include EMJ Management and
Look Custom.
"We can provide everything from ready-made
garments all the way through to bespoke designs,"
says Look Custom key account manager Caryn
Argun. Advising on garment design is one of the key
roles such businesses can play.
Practical considerations - providing pockets of
sufficient number and size to accommodate the
items wearers need to carry with them for instance
- have to be taken into account as well as style,
and employees have to have an input into what the
uniforms look like as well as the employer.
"If you don't have the staff on your side then
you are sunk," observes Ann Dowdeswell, sales
director at Jermyn Street Design, another corporate
workwear specialist.
Once the design has been agreed, samples
of the garments in all available sizes can be sent
out for workers to try on, says EMJ. When each
individual is happy then he or she fills in an order
form, the information is collated by the supplier and
the items can be boxed up and sent to the person
concerned.
An alternative is for the supplier to organise a
sizing session at the workplace. Representatives
will come along with samples and provide advice to
employees, collect all the information on individual
sizes and arrange for uniforms to be despatched
accordingly.
The exercise may have to be conducted out-ofhours however depending on shift patterns, and
employees are likely to press their employer for
continued page 47
46 ➜
August 2016
Uniforms
Trent Barton’s Carole Hind, first female National Bus Driver of the Year.
overtime payments if it takes place once their shifts
have ended, Dowdeswell says.
Sizing charts are usually available. "We use the
same sizes as Marks & Spencer," she says.
A typical uniform issue for a driver might consist
of four shirts - polo or otherwise - a couple of pairs
of trousers, a fleece or a pullover and maybe an
anorak.
How long these items last before they need
replacing depends on the quality of the material
used and how well they are looked after by the
wearer.
"Shirts will usually last 12 months, jumpers 12
to 18 months and trousers about the same," says
Dowdeswell. "An anorak should last a couple of
years."
Drivers trousers are of course especially vulnerable
to wear and tear. "The ones we supply however are
made from a good-quality polywool lycra and most
of them are half-lined," she says.
"Some companies issue an entire set of clothes
every year though because that's the contract they
have with their employees," says Argun.
15 August 2016
Budgets allocated to drivers’ uniforms vary, with
firms typically spending £110 to £120 per issue. The
more that is spent however the more employees are
likely to feel valued.
"People are discerning these days and will soon
spot if an employer has only budgeted £5.50 for a
shirt," observes Dowdeswell. "What is more, that
shirt will soon have wrinkled cuffs and a collar that
has gone out of shape."
When it comes to replacing items some operators
still use a points system which kicks in a year or so
after the uniform is first issued. Drivers are allocated
so many points which they can use if they wish to
change certain items more regularly than would be
their employer's usual policy.
It means that they do not end up with an extra
fleece being issued to them for example when what
they could really do with is another pair of trousers.
Clothes will last longer if they are looked after
and everything supplied these days tends to be
machine-washable and requires either zero or
minimal ironing. Washing instructions are always
provided along with a booklet on garment care,
says Dowdeswell.
Failure to look after a uniform may be a reflection
of the wearer's unhappiness with it, she suggests.
"In many jobs what an employee wears to work
gives them their sense of identity," she observes. "If
there has been little or no investment in keeping the
uniform up to date and comfortable then wearers will
start to care less about their general appearance."
No matter which items are chosen, they should
bear the company's logo. Otherwise the wearer
may face a benefit-in-kind tax liability.
Jermyn Street Design can supply everything a
driver is likely to require, including belts and a tie if
that is what the chosen uniform includes.
Providing shoes means a bigger bill but at least
ensures that drivers will not turn up to work in scruffy
trainers or even flip-flops in hot summer weather.
Jermyn Street is sensitive to the fact that some
employees may have religious concerns about
too much exposure of flesh and can ensure that
garments are supplied that take them into account.
It can offer bespoke garments too - some drivers
may be larger than is allowed for by standard sizes
and may have to be measured individually.
Given the number of uniform suppliers that have
come and gone in recent years, Jermyn Street advises
prospective customers to check that whoever they
are proposing to deal with is financially sound.
A key question to ask a garment business, Jermyn
Street suggests, is whether it has an even spread of
clients or relies on just a few big ones. If the latter is
the case then the loss of a couple of major contracts
could put its future in doubt.
continued page 48
➜
47
Uniforms
Not all bus and coach firms are big enough to
commission uniform designs that are unique to
them.
With a network of over 600 dealers in the UK, and
one of the biggest corporate workwear specialists in
the world, Dickies can supply off-the-shelf clothing
in a selection of standard colours and can arrange
for the customer's logo to be embroidered onto the
items selected. "Even if you're a small company you
can still have a corporate image without having to
pay an arm and a leg for it," says sales director Rob
Haines.
Again working in conjunction with its dealers "over ninety per cent of the business we do is through
our dealer network," he says - it can help design
garments for major companies and deliver them
too. "Over the years we've worked for everybody
from supermarkets to airlines," he observes.
The Dickies range is by no means restricted to
garments suitable for drivers. Clothing appropriate
for everybody, from workshop technicians to bus
and coach cleaners, is available too.
Many items of clothing - polo shirts for example are made in less developed countries and in some
cases they are produced in workplaces that fall
some way below the standards seen in Europe.
Responsible operators should ask their suppliers
where the corporate workwear they are buying is
48 made, and under what conditions and must ensure
they are not fobbed off by a vague and unsatisfactory
answer.
Jermyn Street points out that the Modern Slavery
Act 2015 obliges companies with an annual turnover
of more than £36million to publish a yearly statement
showing the steps they have taken to ensure that no
slavery or human trafficking is taking place in their
business or within their supply chain. Smaller firms
may consider adopting the same policy voluntarily.
"It's something we're really conscious of," says
Haines. All the companies that supply Dickies
wherever they are in the world have to pass a strict
code of conduct audit, he stresses; and if they don't
pass, then Dickies won't buy their goods.
"Obviously it restricts where we can source from,"
he says. "But it's the right thing to do."
Contact
Jermyn Street Design
020 8563 5000
www.jsd.co.uk
Look Custom
01923 800013
www.lookcustom.co.uk
August 2016
who buys what
The latest bus and coach deliveries
MCV-bodied Volvo B8RLEs for Leicester park-and-ride
Eight MCV-bodied Volvo Bus B8RLEs have
been delivered to Leicestershire-based Roberts
Travel Group for use on the Leicester park-andride bus service operated on behalf of the county
council.
“We have always had a good experience with
our dealings with Volvo, and the locality of our
Volvo dealership in Bardon makes it very convenient for any back up support,” says Jonathan
Hunt, managing director, Roberts Travel Group.
“The fuel consumption, reliability and size of this
particular vehicle, with capacity for 91 passengers,
perfectly meets our needs for this contract.”
Jo Standbridge, retail bus & coach sales manager, Volvo Bus, adds: “The B8RLE is well proven,
not only in the UK but around the world, for its
durability and reliability, which makes it ideal for
operations such as park-and-ride schemes.”
The B8RLE is powered by a Volvo D8K 280
engine and ZF Ecolife 6AP1200 B 6-speed automatic gearbox with neutral bus stopping.
Roberts Travel, which has a fleet of 75 vehicles, a quarter of which are Volvos, was founded
in 1995 and is based in Hugglescote. In 2005 the
Roberts Holiday division was set up providing
coach holidays throughout the UK and Europe.
The company provides a school service throughout Leicestershire and also operates a scheduled
service for the county council.
www.volvobuses.co.uk
New Jonckheere-bodied B11R for Minsterley Motors
Minsterley Motors has taken delivery of a new
Volvo B11R/Jonckheere JHV126 coach to add to
its growing fleet.
The Shropshire-based company has purchased
the new coach based on good experiences with
Volvos in its existing fleet.
“We needed a new 53-seater for our fleet, to
work on our increasingly busy tour programme
in Ireland and the UK,” says managing director John Jones. “The savings we are expecting to
make with the highly fuel-efficient Euro 6 engine,
as well as our previous experience of Volvo quality, operational costs, and reliable
support network, meant we had
no hesitation in selecting a Volvo
once again.
“In addition, we also know
that we will get the aftersales
service we require from our local
Volvo dealership, Hartshornes in
Shrewsbury and Walsall.”
Minsterley Motors is a family
run business with a fleet of more
than 30 coaches which work on
holiday and private hire operations, plus a growing fleet of service buses.
49
who buys what
New Volvo B11R 9700 for Furey’s Coaches
Recommendations from fellow operators led
Furey’s Coaches of Sligo to order its new integral
Volvo B11R 9700. Furey’s required a new vehicle
for its touring business in Ireland, the UK and
Europe, and wanted a high quality interior specification including TV, USB sockets and wi-fi.
“The B11R 9700 is an impressive vehicle that
fits the bill perfectly for our luxury coach travel
service,” says Aiden Furey, director of Furey’s
Coaches. “Our customers set the bar high in terms
of their expectations and not only does the vehicle
have the best interior comfort and convenience
benefits, it really looks the part too.
“When we were seeking a new coach we spoke
with some of our operator colleagues here in Ireland to get their thoughts on what would be a
good choice and the B11R 9700 came thoroughly
recommended.”
Furey reports that Jim Burke of GoBus.ie, who
recently ordered eight of the same specification
from Volvo, spoke very highly of the model. “We
already have some Volvo coaches in our fleet that
have given us great service so this, on top of all
the recommendations, made it an easy choice for
us,” adds Furey.
Volvo’s new Driver Support System (DSS) is
fitted as standard on the B11R 9700, which also
includes AEBS (forward collision warning and
advanced emergency braking systems), LKS (lane
keeping support) and ACC (adaptive cruise control). ACC will also be offered as an option on
other Volvo B11R body types when specified with
the I-Shift gearbox.
A family-owned business, Furey’s Coaches
was established in 1972 and specialises in coach
and minibus services for corporate travel, golf
tours, school trips, sports events and guided tours
around Ireland.
Clarkes takes new ‘flagship’ i8 integral
Clarkes Coaches has taken a new DAF-powered Irizar i8 integral as its new flagship vehicle.
One of the first three operators to buy the i8,
Clarkes specified a VIP interior for its contract
with Watford Football Club.
The 14-metre tri-axle i8 has 36 padded leather
seats, aranged in groups of four around tables,
and a hand-built kitchen at the centre. Additional
equipment includes contactless phone charging
bases on the tables, USB and mains sockets, and
LCD screens at each table in addition to a full
audio-visual system.
“We knew the i8 integral was perfect for our
team coach when we first saw it in Spain as a production prototype,” says Clarkes director Terry
Newman. “Having already been impressed with
the performance of the i6 integrals we have bought,
we could see that the i8 takes the impressive styling and attention to detail to another level.
“This i8 integral has become our flagship vehicle, and we are very pleased with it. The interior,
with customised leather seats throughout, has
many unique features which we believe set the
standard for VIP coaches of this type,” he adds.
The i8 is powered by a 460bhp MX13 engine
with ZF’s AS-Tronic auto-shift gearbox, and safety
aids including Lane Departure Warning and
Adaptive Cruise Control.
Clarkes Coaches bought Irizar i6 integrals for
its entire 2013/14 fleet intake, and earlier this year,
returned to Irizar UK to complete its Euro 6 fleet
replacement, buying 12 DAF-powered Irizar i6
integrals worth £2.5million.
www.irizar.co.uk
50 August 2016
who buys what
City Circle heads for Euro 6 fleet with new Scania i6s
Twenty Scania Irizar i6 coaches have joined the
fleet of Hayes, Middlesex-based City Circle UK.
This additional batch makes the fleet predominantly Scania-powered and means the City Circle
fleet is more than 75 per cent of the way towards
an all-Euro 6 fleet.
“This latest delivery of Scania Irizar i6 coaches
to City Circle represents one of our largest retail
coach orders,” says Martin West, general manager
– retail sales, Scania (Great
Britain). “The level of specification on the new vehicles will
deliver a fantastic service on
the company’s executive tours
around the UK and Ireland for
incoming tourists, and corporate charter services. We wish
City Circle every success as
they introduce the new vehicles into service.”
Sixteen of the i6 coaches
are 12.9m long and based on
Scania’s K 410 6x2*4 chassis
with Scania 410hp engine, fully-automated Opticruise gear
selection system. These vehicles have 53 reclining
seats with leather and extra padded flaps, sunken
toilet/washroom and Frenzel kitchen located at
the centre continental exit.
The remaining four are 10.8m coaches based on
Scania’s K 360 EB 4x2 chassis with 360hp engine
and fully-automated Opticruise with 36 halfleather reclining seats.
www.scania.co.uk
New Beulas Mythos for Blakes Coaches
Blakes Coaches, of Tiverton, Devon, has taken
delivery of a 13.2m MAN RR4 Beulas Mythos triaxle coach. Powered by a 480bhp engine and ZF
AS-Tronic 12 AS 2301 transmission with Intarder,
the vehicle has 53 Relax Tourismo Soft Ventalato
seats with leather headrests and piping, magazine nets and seat-back
tables.
The 3.8m-high coach
is fitted with USB charging points between each
double seat and has
cinema-style blue LED
lighting to gangway
extremes and step edges
and a driver’s bunk.
The Mythos includes
an audio and DVD system with two monitors,
reverse and interior
surveillance camera,
August 2016
and forward-facing camera switchable through
monitors.
The vehicle was supplied by Moseley in the
South.
www.moseleysouth.co.uk
51
who buys what
Optare delivers Solo on its doorstep
Utopia Coaches has added an additional Optare
Solo to its f leet. Established in 1994, Utopia
Coaches is a family-owned company located in
Sherburn-in-Elmet, very close to the Optare factory.
The Euro 5, 7.2m slim-line Solo seats up to 19
and has belted seats. It will operate on services
between York, Pontefract and Selby and was purchased to enhance the service frequency.
“We already have five Optare Solos in our fleet,
and they have proven to be ideal for the rural
nature of most parts of our service routes,” says
Owen Thorpe, Utopia Coaches. “The new Solo
will operate on routes with a 7.5tonne weightrestricted bridge, so the Solo’s manoeuvrability,
lightweight and slim-line design make it perfect
for operation on this route.”
Chris Hunt, Optare regional sales manager,
adds: “Optare is proud to be able to supply a bus
with the versatility to suit a weight-restricted
route to an operator right on the doorstep and
help support the economy in the local area in the
process.”
www.optare.com
New Tourismo for Wilfreda Beehive
Doncaster-based Wilfreda
Beehive has taken delivery of two
Tourismos, adding to one it took last
year. Both coaches have 49 leather
seats and are powered by MercedesBenz OM 470, 290kW engines,
through 6-speed ZF EcoLife automatic transmissions.
The Tourismos feature dual electronic folding 19in LCD monitors
and BOSCH audio/visual systems,
4G wi-fi preparation, wood-effect
f looring and pleated privacy curtains.
Wilfreda Beehive’s fleet offers private hire, day
excursions and touring holidays throughout the
UK and Europe.
Why smart people
buy
Compak Parts
The two new Tourismos delivered to Wilfreda
Beehive were supplied by Mercedes-Benz Coach
Sales at EvoBus (UK).
www.evobus.co.uk
• Genuine OEM quality parts, made for purpose
• Compak OEM parts cost less thank you think!
• Unrivalled availability - One-stop-shop
• Optimum delivery times - inc VOR
• Technical expertise & support
• Continuous and rigorous development testing
For complete peace of mind:-
Tel: 020 8858 3781 Email: [email protected]
52 Classified
2005 Mercedes Cheetah for sale
25 Seats (certified for 29), MOT 1st March 2017,
low mileage, very good condition, blue interior.
£24,995 + VAT
T: 01653 690500 - Perryʼs Coaches, North Yorkshire
2011 Volvo B9R
Plaxton Panther for sale
53/57 Seats, 1 Owner, 173,000 kms, Available
August with new MOT. £120,000 + VAT
T: 01425 652842
sell smarter
sell online
busandcoach.com
August 2016
* &)& '& * &" & -&"
& # '--+
& #
* %+ - **
* " & '--+ * &" ", ! & '--+ *
* ' - " * +& $& $ +& $& )& $ +& $& $ +& $& &" (,&& , & +& ' * 53
Inbound
Strong growth in visits
from inbound markets
V
isitBritain reports strong growth
in inbound tourism from the US,
Germany and the United Arab
Emirates in the first quarter of 2016,
with the best ever first quarter for total
inbound visits.
The Office for National Statistics data shows
that from January to March this year visits from the
US grew by 9 per cent to 542,000 compared to
the same period last year. Strong growth was also
seen from EU countries with 5.4 million visits, a 10
per cent increase on the first quarter of last year,
and spending up 7 per cent to £1.8billion.
Germany and Spain showed double-digit growth
in visits and spending in the first quarter. Visits
from Germany grew 24 per cent to 602,000 with
spending up 26 per cent to £222million. A new
record was set for the number of inbound visits
from Spain which grew by 12 per cent to 548,000,
with spending also up 15 per cent to £195million.
Visits from the UAE were up 15 per cent to
77,000, the strongest first quarter on record,
54 coachtourismprofessional.co.uk
with spending up 9 per cent to £105million, while
visits from China, the world’s largest outbound
market, were on a par with last year’s record first
quarter. Visits from Australia grew by 10 per cent to
157,000 with spending increasing by 30 per cent
to £173million.
“It’s really encouraging to see strong growth in
visits from some of our most important markets
and we now have the opportunity to build on this
as Britain is offering great value for inbound visitors,”
says VisitBritain director Patricia Yates. “We are
anticipating a strong summer holiday season as we
spread this message of value and continue our global
‘Home of Amazing Moments’ marketing campaign
to inspire visitors with the amazing experiences they
can only find in Britain and work with partners to
offer great tactical deals to drive bookings.”
Last year set a record for inbound tourism to
Britain on visits and spending with 36.1 million
visits, 5 per cent up on 2014, and spending up 1
per cent to £22.1billion.
ww.visitbritain.org
August 2016
Technology
Videos are key to boosting travel
Customers looking for engaging content on tour operator websites.
D
igital marketing agency Clicky
Media, which works for a number
of national and global brands,
claims that advances in video
technology and the increase in
demand for people to see exactly where they
are going has the most influence on people’s
decision to book a holiday.
Speaking at the Global Travel Group
Conference in Dubai, Clicky Media CEO Oliver
Yeates, said that 67 per cent of people use video
to help them choose a destination, while 50
per cent of travellers engage with videos online
before they decide where to go on holiday.
Internet users are moving away from textheavy websites, according to Clicky, often
ignoring any key content that companies may
be trying to get across to potential customers.
Recent developments in browser technology
August 2016
and increases in average connection speeds has
meant that businesses can now use more video
and photographic content on their websites.
“This engaging content means that websites
and in turn, holiday destinations, can now truly
be brought to life,” says Yeates. “Using beautiful
imagery and compelling video content you can
capture your audience’s attention and if you get
the quality right, turn visitors into customers.”
Clicky also highlights that the use of mobile is
changing people’s holiday booking habits, with
52 per cent of visits to travel destination sites
being made from a mobile phone. There has
also been a 50 per cent year-on-year increase
in searches for the travel category from mobile,
adds Clicky, as well as a 100 per cent increase
in mobile travel conversion rates from 2015 to
2016.
www.clicky.co.uk
coachtourismprofessional.co.uk 55
London
London is Open campaign aims to
boost capital attractions
I
n the wake of the referendum, London mayor
Sadiq Khan launched a new campaign,
London is Open, and said the city remains
the favoured destination for international
travellers.
According to the International Passenger Survey,
London received a record 3.8 million visits from
overseas travellers in the first three months of this
year, an increase of seven per cent, compared to
the same period in 2015.
Spending by international travellers during this
period, which included cultural highlights like
Lumiere London, a unique light festival which lit
up the West End and Kings Cross, was over
£2.2billion, an increase of four per cent compared
to the same period last year.
The Mayor is urging all Londoners, organisations
and businesses to show their support for the
#LondonIsOpen message via social media,
through other creative ways. The starting idea for
the campaign is built around London opening its
doors to welcome people in, and will encourage
people to use this as a platform for their own
contributions. A film of famous locations opening
their doors has been produced.
“Yet again we have seen a rise in the number of
visitors to London, which underlines how important
our world-renowned art, culture, sport, architecture
and history is to the capital,” says Khan. “My
message is clear: London is open and welcomes
visitors from every corner of the globe.
“London is the best city in the world. It is
creative, international, entrepreneurial and full of
opportunities. I’m incredibly proud to be mayor of a
city that’s so comfortable with its diversity and so
optimistic about its future.”
Gordon Innes, CEO London & Partners adds:
“London offers even better value for international
travellers than ever before. With events to mark
the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire of London
and an unrivalled season of cultural events on the
horizon this autumn it couldn’t be a better time to
book a trip to the city.”
According to the London Attractions Monitor, a
survey of more than 50 of the city's major tourist
attractions, visits remained steady at 13.2 million
during the first quarter of this year compared to the
same period last year.
www.londonandpartners.com
August 2016
Operators
Edwards Coaches continues
partnership with Wales
Millennium Centre
Edwards Coaches extends role as main coach provider to Wales Millennium Centre.
E
dwards Coaches is continuing its
partnership with the Wales Millennium
Centre, Cardiff Bay for a second year
as its main coach provider. Attracting
more than 14 million visitors since
opening, the Centre has staged over 3,500 theatre
performances.
“As a company we’re delighted to be supporting
the arts and Welsh culture through the Wales
Millennium Centre,” says Jason Edwards,
commercial director. “Moving forward we’re
August 2016
anticipating another great 12 months together and
the continuation of this fantastic partnership.
“The Centre has become established as an
international icon for Welsh culture, creativity and
excellence, showcasing the best of Wales to the
world and the best of the world to Wales. Working
alongside such a prestigious venue will help grow
the Edwards Coaches brand as it expands across
South Wales and further afield.”
www.edwardscoaches.co.uk
coachtourismprofessional.co.uk 57
Tour operators
New river cruise options on offer
from Shearings for 2017
S
hearings Holidays has launched its 2017
River Cruise brochure, featuring 14 new
itineraries within a new design. Among
the offers are three new sailings on the
four-star MS Serenade 2, an expanded
range of mini-cruises, a tour along Russia’s imperial
waterways and new tours along the Adriatic coast,
Douro river and Baltic Sea coast.
The new itineraries available on board the MS
Serenade 2 include a 10-day ‘Beautiful Bavaria to
the Danube River’ cruise priced from £1,299 and
a 10-day ‘Hidden Gems of the Danube’ itinerary,
which visits Austria, Slovakia and Hungary.
Shearings has also added a new 10-day itinerary
on the MPS Da Vinci, ‘The Rhine, Strasbourg &
Scenic Switzerland’ and a sailing exploring
Holland’s Hidden Gems on the MPS Rotterdam, as
well as a new cruise in the Moselle Valley on board
the MV Virginia.
The mini-cruise range has also been expanded
with the addition of a 5-day ‘Keukenhof Gardens
Mini-Cruise’, a 6-day ‘Scenic Swiss Rhine MiniCruise’, and a 6-day ‘Escape to Provence MiniCruise’ from £664pp.
“The ongoing rise in bookings and high customer
volumes has given us the confidence to continue
investing in different aspects of the business,” says
Caroline Brown, commercial director, Shearings
Holidays.
"In 2017, customers can choose from five
exclusively chartered vessels, part charters as
well as taster mini cruises with a comprehensive
selection of tours along breathtaking waterways.
We’ve also added a cruise along Russia’s Imperial
Waterways and introduced audio guides on all our
2017 vessels."
The brochure also features two tours on-board
the MS Mona Lisa, a 14-day ‘Elbe Amsterdam to
Berlin’ cruise, sailing along the Dutch & German
Waterways and a 12-day ‘Beautiful Berlin to
Wonderful Copenhagen’ cruise, sailing Havel,
Oder, & The Baltic Sea.
There are also new tours along the panoramic
Adriatic coast, the Rhone, and the Baltic Sea
Coast, plus additional capacity on the Douro river
and Venice Lagoon, with an updated collection of
‘Escorted by Shearings’ cruises.
www.shearings.com
August 2016

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