from the Volvo Press Release files

Co Monaghan based Matthews Coach Hire have taken five Volvo B9R coaches with Plaxton Panther bodywork, just weeks after taking their first ever new Volvo – the B12B with Plaxton Elite body which was exhibited at last year’s Euro Bus Expo 2008.

Noel Matthews, Fleet Manager of Matthews Coach Hire explained, “There are a number of reasons for choosing Volvo products this time, not least because the Volvo name is associated with reliability. When we demonstrated the B12B tri-axle Plaxton Elite it returned excellent fuel figures, along with the outstanding driveability of the I-Shift. The fact that the B9R is lighter and the driveline incorporates the I-Shift will hopefully give us even better fuel returns.”

Noel continued, “Volvo coach products come with competition beating warranty terms – two years, plus third year driveline – and the products benefit from superb support through Volvo’s aftermarket, which, where we are based, means that we can utilise both Irish Commercials and Dennison Commercials.

“A quarter of our 24 vehicle fleet is now Volvo and we will be closely monitoring the six new vehicles’ performances, but from what we have seen from the B12B we are very optimistic for them all.”

The B9Rs are specified with Volvo’s 9.4 litre D9B engine rated at 380hp and I-Shift combination. In a theatre-style configuration, the 57 seats have leather headrests and three-point seat belts, climate control air conditioning, audio/visual system, a seven camera CCTV system, GPS tracking and fleet management system, Wi-Fi capability and are fitted with electronic destination equipment.

Matthews Coach Hire are proud of their 100% safety record. So committed are they to promoting road safety that they were the first operator in Ireland to introduce Alcolock starter inhibiters, which immobilise the vehicle on detection of alcohol, and they are now fitted across their entire fleet.

The Volvo B9R comes with safety as standard, with all round disc brakes, ABS with ASR and their latest generation of Electronic Braking System incorporates Hill Start Aid, Emergency Braking Assistance and Brake Blending, whilst Volvo’s VR3250 compact retarder offers very powerful auxiliary braking, resulting in considerably reduced brake wear too.

James Hyde, Regional Coach Sales Manager commented, “We’re delighted to have our first B9Rs in operation in Ireland. The product has obvious benefits such as the weight advantage and the clean and efficient driveline, making it a versatile option for operators for a number of applications.”

Matthews Coach Hire was founded in 1995 by Paddy and Mary Matthews and remains family owned and operated by them, their three sons – Noel, Paddy Jnr and Gerard – and a team of 45 employees. The company specialises in private hire, daily commuter services and their own tour programme throughout Ireland and Europe.

For more than 60 years, route 59 was a wholly single-deck service, however more recently double-decks have started to feature.

Here we can watch from the upper deck as AV80 negociates the narrow and leafy roads around Killiney Hill, including the very tight turn at the former terminus.

Bus Eireann’s VWL172 taking a good load on city service 9.

Ex Dublin Bus Olympian RH98 now with Lallys of Galway on thecity tour.

Customer information on diversions at Hawkins Street

Dublin Bus has often let us down with poor quality or non-existent information on changes, but they have done themselves proud this St. Patricks Day with well-produced, professional looking, and easy to understand information on services diverted or curtailed due to the parade.

Well done Dublin Bus, this is the standard we want to see in the future!

Happy St. Patricks Day everyone.

Halpenny's new Volvo B12B (photo: Volvo Bus)

(from the Volvo Press Release files)

Halpenny Travel of Dundalk has just taken delivery of another Volvo B12B Jonckheere to join its all-Volvo fleet.

The new vehicle will be used for touring around Ireland on behalf of a number of operators and Halpenny are confident it is ideal for the task in hand. “We love the new Jonckheere bodywork. Not only does it create a really strong first impression, the interior boasts high levels of passenger comfort – two essential factors in this business,” explained John Halpenny, General Manager of Halpenny Travel .

Specified with Volvo’s fuel efficient DH12E 12 litre engine – rated at 420hp and coupled to the I-Shift gearbox – the 12.2m  51/53 seater vehicle features full climate control, toilet, CD/DVD player with two monitors and facilities for hot and cold drinks.

“We know from experience that our customers will love it, but the B12B Jonckheere is just as popular with the drivers,” continued John Halpenny. “It’s a pleasure to drive. But also, the back up we receive from Volvo through Dennisons at Newry and Irish Commercials at Naas is excellent – one of the major reasons we keep coming back to them.”

Volvo’s Regional Coach Sales Manager, Duncan Crosby commented, “We are delighted by Halpenny’s continued loyalty and satisfaction with our products and services. We’ll be working hard to ensure that both live up to their high expectations!”

Established back in 1920, Halpenny Travel is a third generation family-owned operator specialising in luxury private hire. Its customers range from local organisations and community groups to corporate clients and international travel operators.

Track sections await installation on Cherrywood new viaduct

Close-up of shot above.

Finally, after more than 9 months of inactivity, work seems to have resumed on the Cherrywood LUAS extension, with the delivery of rails and the start of tracklaying on the bridge which has itself been complete for almost a year.

]]> http://allaboutbuses.wordpress.com/2009/02/18/finally-track-laying-at-cherrywood/feed/ 1 allaboutbuses 20090218-cw1 20090218-cw2 http://allaboutbuses.wordpress.com/2009/02/18/wrights-deliver-to-burnley-pendle/ http://allaboutbuses.wordpress.com/2009/02/18/wrights-deliver-to-burnley-pendle/#comments Wed, 18 Feb 2009 21:51:10 +0000 allaboutbuses http://allaboutbuses.wordpress.com/?p=493 ]]>

Volvo / Wright Eclipse 2 - photo © Volvo Bus

PRESS RELEASE

Nineteen new Volvos with Northern irish built bodywork for Transdev Burnley and Pendle

Transdev Blazefield have taken delivery of 19 Volvo B7RLEs for its Burnley and Pendle operation.
Specified with Volvo’s Euro 5 Incentive, common rail fuel injection D7E 7.1litre engine rated at 290hp and ZF six speed gearbox, the 12.15m vehicles feature the new Wrightbus Eclipse 2 bodywork.  Fitted with 44 Civic V3 saloon seats, the buses also have capacity for 39 standing passengers as well as a storage area for buggies and bags. Disabled access is by means of a powered ramp and the vehicles also feature a 10 camera CCTV system and electronic destination equipment with full colour front destination blinds.

“The Volvo/Wrightbus combination is well known to us and has a proven track record,” explained Transdev Blazefield Managing Director, (Operations) Russell Revill. “So we were pleased to be able to buy Volvo once again, particularly with the excellent quality assurance package they offer.”

Volvo’s Regional Commercial Manager, Arthur Argyle added, “We’re delighted to be doing business with Transdev Blazefield once again. It’s an excellent reflection on our vehicles that they continue to meet the stringent standards of one of the major names in the bus industry.”

The new vehicles are being deployed on Burnley and Pendle’s Mainline group of services operating in the Colne, Nelson, Burnley and Padiham areas, as well as covering adjoining towns from Accrington, Keighley, Clitheroe and Barnoldswick.

Burnley and Pendle is one of seven companies within the Blazefield Group, each with its distinct local identity and the Blazefield Group is owned by Transdev, who operate in nine countries in Europe, Canada and Australia. Transdev provides transport to more than 1.2 billion passengers a year.

BUS EIREANN has confirmed that 27 buses are to be cut from its fleet at Limerick as part of the cutbacks due to take effect next month.

Although still under negociation with the unions, a spokesman for the company has confirmed to the Limerick leader the scale of the proposed fleet cutback in the city.

See full Limerick Leader article for details

AllAboutBuses is now on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/AllAboutBuses

Follow us on Twitter for notification on when articles are posted here, and pointers to breaking news.

A landscape garden is planned for the carpark at the front of the station. An internal walkway will also connect the rail and bus station, providing greater ease of access for passengers.

Snow at Ballinteer, south Dublin.

Heavy snow that fell in Dublin yesterday resulted in the closure of the Airport, and disruption to many bus routes, particularly in south and southwest Dublin and Co. Wicklow.

The snow has remained on the ground, but with roads now cleared, only the mountain services 44B and 65 are curtailed.

Route 44b
Is operating to Johnny Fox’s Pub.

Route 65
Is operating to Blessington and Ballymore Eustace. Ballyknockan are not being served.

A Dublin Bus at Cherrywood, in South County Dublin, on Tue 3rd Feb 2009

DUBLIN BUS is continuing to run most services despite sub-zero tempratures and blizzard conditions in south and west Dublin this evening, although traffic and weather conditions are playing havoc with journey times and schedules.

Some services to outlying areas have had to be curtailed, including the 44 to Enniskerry (stopping at Kilternan) the 44B (not running to Glencullen), the 15B (curtailed at Anne Devlin Park) 16 (not serving Grange Road or Ballinteer), the 65 (curtailed at Tallaght) and buses along the N4 which are not calling in to Lucan Village.

LD208, one of Bus Eireann's new luxury double-deck commuter coaches, seen at Cavan Bus Station

Over the last few months Bus Eireann has been taking delivery of a fleet of 32 high specification double-deck commuter coaches, designed to provide extra capacity and comfort on medium-distance comuter runs to Dublin from counties Cavan and Meath. The buses, built by Berkhof on DAF chassis, are to three-axldesign to maximise capacity, and indeed seat more on the upper deck alone than the conventional single-deck coaches they are replacing.

But what are they like from the passenger point of view? Our editor took the 4 hour round trip to Cavan to experience the new coaches at work.

Visually, they are very stylish, and make an impression both in terms of design and sheer size. Bus Eireann have wisely decided to steer away from using them as mobile advertising hoardings as with traditional double-deckers, thus allowing the space between decks to be used to show off the company branding to maximum advantage.

The upper deck is bright and airy, with comfortable seating, and fully belted. Overhead racks are provided throughout.

The front seats not only feature the best views, but you get cup-holders and the dash is designed for extra legroom

The seating is comfortable, even on a journey of more than 2 hours, and the belts are easy to use, and accomodate the largest of passengers without feeling cramped.

The front seat give you the real “King of the Road” experience, and unlike many double-deckers, do not suffer from limited legroom, as a special recess has been designed under the dash to give extra stretching room. The safety bar is well positioned below the eyeline, and is padded, and there are even cup-holder recesses in the dash. All the seats feature controls for recline angle, though unusually my front seat seemed to have some sort of built in vibrating bottom massager linked to the braking system – which made sudden stops a very interesting experience, though I am not sure that this is exactly what the manufacturer intended!

Being a double-decker, even the non-front seats gave a vasty enhanced view compared to the blurry hedgerows that is all that can be seen during a normal coach journey. Being able to see over the hedges and across the countryside is no small advantage, and makes a longer journey much more enjoyable. I know that Bus Eireann think in terms of capacity when buying these vehicles, but they should also consider the vastly enhanced journey experience that comes from greater vision for the passenger, and consider introducing these vehicles on a wider range of services.

Climate-wise, the coach was warm as toast, with cool air available via individual blowers if required. The noise level was very quiet, with the engine almost inaudible upstairs.

The vehicle also seemed very nippy, and had no difficulty keeping up with the other traffic on the N3, and will doubtless benefit from the abolition of the speed restriction on double-deck coaches that comes into effect from February 1st 2009.

All in all, a very positive experience, 10 out of 10 for style, 9 out of 10 for comfort, and the only thing missing is wifi.

More please!

New 09-reg Volvo B9TL/Wright Eclipse VG34

2009 registered cars may be thin on the ground, but thanks to an ongoing delivery of buses originally ordered way back at the end of 2007, Dublin Bus has a number of smart new 09-reg double-deckers on the streets in the first month of the year.

The new buses have seen the end of the 44-year practice of matching fleet and registration numbers, making identification of buses difficult for both enthusiasts and staff alike.

The company bas started to introduce new larger fleet number transfers front and rear, but as seen in this view of Summerhill’s new VG34, not all buses have received these yet.

Earlier this month I needed to travel to the North Devon town of Ilfracombe for a part-business part-pleasure weekend, and as is my normal preference, I elected to do this entirely by public transport, including the airport leg in Dublin.

For the first part of the journey I would be accompanied by “Donnybrook Observer” who was also flying that morning, while for the final leg of the tip I would be guided by an old friend and former Ensignbus colleague, John Burch, now Deputy Director of the Confederation of Passenger Transport in the UK, who had invited me to stay in his charming Ilfracome property, itself the former station master’s house of the long abandoned Ilfracombe branch line.

Taking the absolute minimum of baggage with me, and using only a Nokia camera-phone, I aimed to record as much of the trip and the various modes of transport seen and used as possible.

All these photos are available in fullsize mode – just click on the picture for the bigger view!

Setting off from Ballinteer on the 0900 14A

With our flights due to depart Dublin around midday, Donnybrook Observer and I decided to leave Ballinteer at around 9am, choosing the 0900 14A departure, so that we could get to sample the “via Palmerston Park” special working.

This diversion is less needed now that the 128 provides a regular service in the area, but when we arrived at Palmerston Park, the 128 at the stop was not yet loading, and so we took on around 15 of its potential passengers. Our bus was Volvo Olympian RV483, and was quite full by the time it reached Rathmines.

The diversion via Palmerston Park allowed us to steal some customers from a waiting 128

RV483 drops off at O'Connell Street, stage 1 of the journey over.

The early morning sun made photography of both the 14A, and the next leg of our trip on the Airlink Express difficult, as it was both bright and directly behind the buses in O’Connell Street. The shot of RV483 is interesting, in the the Spire is visible over the bus, but not through the windows, making it look as if the entire weight is being supported by the roof of the bus. This optical effect is caused by a high level of reflection on the condensation on the inside of the bus windows.

Arriving at Dublin Airport on the Airlink Express. 8 year old AV125 and its sisters will be replaced on this service by new Wright Geminis in the new year.

Arriving at Dublin Airport in good time, DO’s flight was without problems, but I was faced with a long wait for the FlyBe Exeter service, as the plane had been delayed for 3 hours earlier in the day due to a security alert at Paris.

The FlyBe Bombardier finally arrives at Dublin

The FlyBe Bombardier eventually arrived, and the flight to Exeter was uneventful. The arrival in Exeter International was in the middle of a downpour, and I sheltered in the tiny terminal building for 20 minutes until the Stagecoach service arrived to take me to the city centre. Bus waiting facilities are poor, and boarding involved a dash across windswept roadways in the pouring rain.

Arriving at Exeter International in a torrential downpour, it's time to make a dash for the Stagecoach

The Airport service seems to be worked by ALX200 bodied Dennis Darts.

Stagecoach service 56 arrives into Exeter Bus Station

In Exeter, a selection of buses in the bus station and city centre.

Stagecoach Enviro 400s can be seen working a number of Devon service

Olympians are also still in evidence, retrofitted with modern LED display

Independents Western Greyhound and Dartline add variety at Exeter

Amongst the earliest lowfloor double-deckers into service, a batch of S-reg Trident ALX400s new to East London, now working on park and ride services in Exeter. The yellow and blue livery looks attractive

In Exeter city centre, buses on local town services. Routes are lettered rather than numbered, a practice dating back many decades to the long vanished municipal operator.

The next part of the journey was by rail – a walk to Exeter Central station to meet John Burch, who was arriving in from London on a Stagecoach SouthWest Trains service, and then we would take the local “Tarka Line” First service to Barnstaple.

I was amazed to see that there were lots of Leyland-National derived class 142 units still in service – the last time I encountered one of these strange beasts was at Goole in Yorkshire, almost 14 years ago!

Exeter Central station, with a class 142 unit heading west

142067 at Barnstaple, showing the Leyland National body styling and bus-type doors and seating.

Arriving in Barnstaple, we had a walk to the town centre and time for a drink before boarding the bus for the final leg to Ilfracombe. John used his local knowledge to ensure that the bus trip was interesting – instead of taking the main Ilfracombe service on route 3, we took the Fridays Only 30E service, which takes a more direct but remote routing along tiny hilly laneways eventually approaching Ilfracombe and the Bristol Channel over the crest of a dramatic hill, giving a view of the lights of Wales far across the dark waters.

Heading along dark country lanes on the 30E.

We arrived at John’s house at 2100 – 12 hours exactly sice the 14A started my journey.

Also included below are a couple of shots taken the following day around Ilfracombe. I did try to get the local independent Filers, but they were elusive on the day! However the holiday camp buses were a real find, with thanks to John for his local knowledge!

Ilfracombe Bus Station with a Firstgroup Olympian on the main Barnstaple service

Two vanishing bus types, a Bristol VRT and a very elderly E-reg Atlantean PDR1A at the local holiday camp.

Photo by TfL/Geoff Caddick

PRESS RELEASE – WRIGHT BUS

The first production series hybrid vehicle was launched into service today (Tuesday December 2^nd) by David Brown, Managing Director of Surface Transport, Transport for London (TfL).

The double deck, unveiled at Horse Guards Parade, demonstrates Mayor Boris Johnson and TfL’s commitment to cleaner, more fuel-efficient public transport.

The Gemini 2 HEV unveiled today is one of five going into service for FirstGroup with another five also due to enter service with Arriva in London this winter.

The Wrightbus Gemini 2 HEV, which made its debut last month at Euro Bus Expo, has been developed following a long-term in-service evaluation with Arriva in London. Also available in conventional diesel form, the Series Hybrid Electric variant features Siemens ELFA^® traction components, with energy provided by a Ford Puma 2.4 litre diesel engine with Lithium Ion batteries.

The other new London hybrid vehicle to feature Wrightbus bodywork is the Volvo B5L Hybrid Double Deck, which sports the original Wrightbus Gemini body. The Volvo B5L Hybrid is specified with a driveline comprising Volvo’s D5E 5 litre, Euro 5 compliant, diesel engine and Volvo’s ISAM (Integrated Starter Alternator Motor) which provides parallel operation of diesel and electric power, coupled to the Volvo     I-Shift 12-speed gearbox.

The new double decks are not the first Wrightbus hybrids to go into service in London. The company supplied their first Electrocity single deck hybrids to TfL in 2006 and there are currently 12 of these, plus one Gemini HEV, already in operation in the capital.

Today’s launch was attended by the Wright Group’s Business Development Director, Jonathan Poynton and William Wright, Director and Co-founder of the group, who commented, “We’re proud to be leading the way in the development of hybrid vehicles for public transport and are delighted that Transport for London sees hybrid technology as playing a key role in the future of London’s public transport. We’re confident that our experience gained in operating this technology in London over the past couple of years means that the new vehicles will deliver even more in terms of improved fuel consumption, air quality and passenger satisfaction.”