Buses World News
In brief: Worldwide montly news & informations about Buses, Busmakers, Passengers' and the Transport Industry
BUSMAKERS NEWS * Germany / India: Daimler's
* Daimler India looks to replicate trucks business success in buses
(Photo: Daimler's bus plant in Oragadam, near Chennaiis expected to roll out buses in 9 tonne, 16 tonne and above 16 tonne categories in both front and rear engine configurations)
Hannover,Germany -PTI -28 Sep, 2014: -- Global commercial vehicle major Daimler is looking to replicate the success of its trucks business in India in the bus segment as well with its new bus plant in the country slated to be operational by second half of next year... Daimler's bus plant located in Oragadam, near Chennai is coming up at an investment of Rs 424 crore. It is expected to roll out buses in 9 tonne, 16 tonne and above 16 tonne categories in both front and rear engine configurations... Daimler will also export buses manufactured in India to other countries... The German commercial vehicle maker said it has sold over 15,000 trucks in India since September 2012. Daimler India exports India-made FUSO trucks in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, Brunei, Zambia, Kenya and Tanzania...Labels: busmakers news India
BUSMAKERS NEWS * Germany: Mercedes Benz's
* "Green Bus Award 2014" for the best-selling Citaro urban bus
(Photo: Mercedes-Benz Citaro bus, presented, from left to right, Sascha Böhnke, Omnibusrevue; Hartmut Schick, Head of Daimler Buses; Till Oberwörder; Head of Marketing, Sales and Aftersales Daimler Buses)
Stuttgart/Hannover,Germany -Daimler (PR) -September 25, 2014: -- The Mercedes-Benz Citaro Euro VI received the "Green Bus Award 2014" at the IAA - the world's leading exhibition for commercial vehicles. The prize has been awarded annually since 2011 to a touring coach and an urban bus in alternation by the specialist publications "Omnibusrevue" and "Busfahrer". This year the trophy has been awarded for the third time in four years to a vehicle from Stuttgart-based Daimler AG.
The award goes to the urban bus displaying the lowest fuel consumption on the demanding, a continuous succession of bus stops and traffic lights impose the highest demands on the driver and the deployed technology. The Citaro Euro VI is more than a match for these conditions, however, as maximum possible overall economy was a specified requirement in the vehicle's development process.Labels: busmakers news Germany
BUSES PURCHASING PROSPECTS * USA: Electric ones
* California - Long Beach Transit restarts RFP Process for electric bus procurement
(Photo: Long Beach Transit Gillig BRT Plus bus)
Long Beach,CAL,USA -Long Beach Post, by BRIAN ADDISON -September 23 2014: -- After a tumultuous attempt at procuring a mini-fleet of electric, zero-emission buses, zero-emission buses (ZEBs), which ultimately resulted in failure, Long Beach Transit (LBT) has restarted the Request for Proposal (RFP) process to build 10 ZEBs... The LBT board unanimously agreed yesterday that Kenneth McDonald, LBT’s President and CEO, will solicit the proposals beginning today. The bid will be paid for partially through the Department of Transportation's Transit Investments for Greenhouse Gas and Energy Reduction (TIGGER) grant, which was awarded to LBT nearly three years ago... According to McDonald, the FTA has not altered the grant that it awarded to LBT; questions were previously raised as to whether LBT would still receive the funds due to deadlines related to the grant... RFP responses will be due back at the beginning of the year...Labels: buses purchasing prospects
BUSES SALES * UK/Germany: Iveco Buses' - France/Bulgaria: MAN's
* Essex - CNH Industrial brand Iveco Bus to supply Deutsche Bahn with up to 710 buses
Video by Kanal von bgmwindgasse -12/5/2014: -- The Crossway series from Iveco Bus. The first vehicle of its kind makes its debut at the IAA Motor Show in Hanover, Germany.
Basildon,Essex,UK -PRNewswire/MarketWatch -Sept. 24, 2014: -- CNH Industrial's leading European bus brand, Iveco Bus, has signed a framework agreement with Germany's largest bus transport company, DB Fuhrpark Service GmbH, for the supply of suburban buses. Under this agreement, DB Regio has commissioned 400 Crossway and Crossway LE (Low Entry) buses, which will be delivered in 2015 and 2016. In addition to this, there is the option for a further supply of 310 vehicles to be delivered in 2017 and 2018... The vehicles will be designed according to EBSF (European Bus System of the Future) standards and are fully compliant with guidelines outlined by the VDV (Association of German Transport Companies)... These vehicles demonstrate the brand's innovative strengths in terms of sustainable mobility, technological excellence, reducing total cost of ownership, and high added value for the customer in terms of quality, comfort, design and profitability... Determining factors in favour of this most recent order included the advantageous total cost of ownership (TCO) and reliability of the Crossway vehicles which are already a part of the current DB fleet... The entire Crossway range benefits from fuel efficient engines with HI-SCR. This after treatment system functions without the use of EGR (exhaust gas recirculation), carries a significant advantage in weight reduction and compactness for easy maintenance... As a result, customers, drivers and passengers will benefit from the new model's improved visibility, lower internal noise levels, storage space and a more comfortable environment...
* France - MAN CNG Buses for Paris and Sofia
Paris,France -NGV Global -September 26, 2014: -- MAN Lions City has secured major orders for natural gas powered buses from France and Bulgaria. Paris-based Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens (RATP) has purchased 103 MAN Lion’s City buses, half of which are powered by Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), and Bulgaria’s city of Sofia has acquired 126 Lion’s City buses, all CNG-powered. The buses for Sofia use 310 HP, 6-cylinder natural gas, Euro 6 engines... The volume of the order is around EUR 30 million (USD 38 million). The units are expected to be delivered in 2015. The units have particularly high seating and standing capacities of around 100 persons... MAN has received an order from the City of Sofia for 126 Lion’s City G CNG type articulated buses intended for public transport. The 18-metre long Lion’s City G CNG seats up to 150 passengers comfortably. The first 20 buses have already been handed over... Using concentrated biogas (biomethane) or e-gas, MAN CNG buses can be operated as CO2-neutral, offering emission levels comparable to that of fully electric vehicles... Due to the very smooth fuel combustion, CNG buses are especially quiet when under way...Labels: buses sales
PASSENGERS TRANSPORT INDUSTRY * USA
* DC - Federal subsidies have inspired some silly transit projects
(Photo: A streetcar named desire)
Washington,DC,USA -The Economist -Aug 9th 2014: -- Late and over budget, streetcars are finally rumbling to life in Washington, DC. The long-awaited service, which has cost at least $135m to build, spans 2.4 miles along H Street in the city’s north-east. But it is not taking passengers yet. Operators are still learning how to drive the electric trains, which may come into service by the end of the year. In the meantime, locals can hop on the bus: plenty of them already ply this route, and often at a faster clip... Commuters have long preferred cars and buses...Labels: passengers transports industry
PASSENGERS TRANSPORT INDUSTRY * Ireland
* Dublin Bus facing 'significant challenges'
(Ultan Courtney told the transport committee that capital investment was a priority)
Dublin,Ireland -RTE News -23 September 2014: -- Dublin Bus has implemented costs savings totalling more than €60m a year, but significant challenges still remain for the company, according to Chairman-Designate Ultan Courtney... He said while the company was now heading for a more stable financial position, the careful and prudent management of the limited financial resources available remain a top priority for management... Mr Courtney said the company will be focusing on the ageing of the bus fleet, the nature and size of the Government subvention, giving customers value for money, and securing value for money from suppliers... Mr Courtney said Dublin Bus had had a very difficult few years, and that management had worked hard to make the most of the revenues available to it...Labels: passengers transports industry
SAFETY BUSES * UK
* Northern Ireland: Bus safety fears as one in four found 'unroadworthy'
Belfast,NI,UK -The Belfast Telegraph, by JOANNE SWEENEY –24 Sept 2014: -- One in four buses in Northern Ireland are unroadworthy or in breach of licensing regulations, teachers have been told, just a day after 45 pupils narrowly escaped death in a terrifying road crash... Teachers have been urged to stop children going on school trips if buses do not provide a seat and belt for every child, a special event at Stormont heard yesterday... The timely message that there is a significant number of defective buses being used to transport schoolchildren came just hours after a bus carrying 45 secondary schoolchildren was in collision with a car on the main Drumquin to Omagh road in Co Tyrone...
* Nottingham has third-highest levels of bus usage in the country
(Photo: Nottingham City Transport said new buses is among the reasons for increased passenger numbers)
Nottingham,East Midlands,UK -The Nottingham Post, by Alexander Britton -September 25, 2014: --
Nottingham has the third highest levels of bus usage in the country, new figures have revealed.
And the city’s 157 bus journeys per person each year puts it at nearly three times the national average of 51 bus journeys a year, according to the Department for Transport.
London topped the table of passenger journeys per head of population with Brighton coming second.
The figures also showed the number of bus journeys in the city increased by 100,000 to 48.8 million in 2013/14. The figures for Nottinghamshire showed a drop from 33.6 million to 33 million...Labels: buses safety, passengers transports industry
PASSENGERS TRANSPORT INDUSTRY * Australia
* Western Australia - Late buses upset passengers
(Picture by Ben Crabtree/The West Australian: Punctuality, passengers upset at late buses)
Perth,WA,Australia -The West Australian, by KENT ACOTT -September 24, 2014: -- Improving the punctuality of Perth's buses will be a key focus for public transport authorities over the next year... The Public Transport Authority's annual survey showed passengers were generally happy with bus, train and ferry services in Perth... But it also identified that passenger satisfaction with the punctuality of buses was at an all-time low - down from 82 per cent to 76 per cent. There was concern - particularly in Midland, Canning and Fremantle-Cockburn - that too many buses were running late or not running to their timed schedules... PTA spokesman David Hynes said buses, like all road vehicles, could be delayed by congestion... He said the survey would prompt a new focus to improve bus punctuality...Labels: passengers transports industry
PASSENGERS TRANSPORT INDUSTRY * Brazil: BRT systems
* Brazil - Idea for future mobility: the good old bus
(Video from YouTube by Effie Absher/CNN -23 Sept 2014: CNN's Shasta Darlington looks at public transportation in the Brazilian city of Curitiba)
Curitiba,PAR,Brasil -CNN, por Meera Senthilingam -22 de septiembre 2014: -- Over 2 million people use the Rede Integrada de Transporte in Curitiba each day... Autonomous vehicles, levitating trains and supersonic tubes have all been suggested as radical ways to transport us faster as the new urban age approaches, but it seems the real secret to a faster commute has been with us all along -- the bus... Bus rapid transit (BRT) systems are paving the way for sustainable, efficient, and affordable travel and now operate in 181 cities worldwide... His design of a 'subway on wheels' transported 50,000 people daily back in the 80s and today sees over 2 million passengers step on board each day. Six circular routes radiate around the city in both directions and in dedicated lanes, enabling frequent services. Colour-coding of buses also makes it easier to know if you're on the right track... This bus-based infrastructure is significantly cheaper to build than going underground like the metro systems seen in other cities such as London and New York... Thirty-three cities in Brazil now host a BRT, as well as a further 26 across the rest of Latin America. The continent is setting the example for the field but has its own social challenges to overcome with its users... The lure is still faster travel but also convenience, with bus stops every 400 meters... The result is a high-capacity bus capable of carrying 250 passengers at once -- as many as a Boeing 787. The priority now it to get people on board... The tried and tested technology of Curitiba has proven successful and the city has long been known as a laboratory for sustainability. So as the future approaches with daydreams of jetpacks and hovercrafts, the reality for us all may be not to miss the bus...Labels: bus rapid transit - BRT
PASSENGERS TRANSPORT INDUSTRY * UK:
* England - Buses as popular today as in 1980s
(Photo: STILL - The growth in passenger numbers could be down to economic factors, low fare rises or milder weather last winter)
London,EN,UK -The Telegraph, by Nick Collins -23 Sep 2014: -- Buses are more fashionable today than at any time since the mid-1980s after a surge in people returning to work boosted journey numbers by almost 100 million a year.
Passengers in England made 4.7 billion trips by bus in the 12 months to March, the highest total in three decades, according to Government figures released on Tuesday... In a change from previous years the growth in bus travel was driven not by older people but by fare paying passengers, suggesting a boom in popularity among working people.
Passenger numbers outside the capital increased by 1.5 per cent, the first rise since national free bus travel for older people was introduced in 2008/09, while journeys in London increased by three per cent... The number of journeys taken in the capital each year has now doubled since the mid-1980s, but this boom has so far been tempered by declining usage across the rest of the country due to rising car ownership...Labels: transport industry news UK
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRY * India
* Maharashtra - Civic bodies yet to finalize tenders for 546 buses sanctioned last year
(Photo: A bus in Mumbai)
Pune,Maharashtra,India -TNN, by Manish Umbrajkar -Sep 23, 2014: -- It has been over a year since the ministry of urban development sanctioned 546 buses for Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad, but the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) is yet to finalize the tenders... At a high-level meeting earlier this month, the ministry had said if any city is finding it difficult to procure the vehicles, then the proposed buses would be transferred to other cities in the waiting. A total of 10,000 buses were sanctioned last year by the UPA government in the second phase of funding under JNNURM... A total of 1,991 buses were sanctioned for 12 cities in the state in the second phase. While Pune has been allotted 200 buses, 346 buses have been sanctioned for Pimpri Chinchwad. All these buses will be run by the PMPML, which has been told by the two corporations to complete the tender process. Five various types of buses are being procured by the two municipal corporations... The rise in the cost of the low-floor (900mm) standard size non-AC CNG buses has resulted in the delay for finalizing the tenders, said the state government...Labels: public transport India, public transportation service
BUSMAKERS NEWS * USA: Blue Bird's
* Georgia - Blue Bird school bus maker to be sold
(Photo: A blue birg factory buses)
Fort Valley,GA,USA -The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, by Christopher Seward
-22 Sept 2014: -- Blue Bird Corp., the Fort Valley-based school bus maker, will be acquired by the Houston investment firm Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp. in a deal valued at nearly $500 million... Hennessy said it is acquiring Blue Bird from Traxis Group for $255 million in cash and shares of Hennessy stock, and the assumption of $235 million in Blue Bird debt... The deal also will make Blue Bird, which employs more than 1,500 workers, a publicly traded company...Labels: busmakers news USA
BUSMAKERS NEWS * UK: Alexander Dennis'
* Scotland - Bus-maker Alexander Dennis takes Australian hit from Custom Coaches
(Photo: Mercedes-Benz O500LE CNG/Custom Coaches CB60 Evo II)
Falkirk,Scotland,UK -The Couries, by JAMES WILLIAMSON -25 September 2014: -- Falkirk bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis fell into the red last year after booking losses and impairments on the value of its administration-hit Australian business... Sydney-based Custom Coaches, which Alexander Dennis bought in a £25 million deal two years ago, was forced to call in the accountants amid difficult trading conditions down under... But Dennis hailed a “strong underlying performance”, which limited overall losses in the period to £1.2 million despite the £32.1m hit from Custom... The group posted a 12.5% increase in revenues. Sales at Dennis slipped just 2%, outperforming a sector in which new registrations fell 9%... But overall sales in the firm’s international business rose 39%, with Asia Pacific the main driver... In March the firm received £100m orders from both Stagecoach and National Express...Labels: busmakers news UK
BUSES SALES * Canada: Blue Bird's ones / USA: Federal Grant for
* Alberta - Southland Transportation adds 101 Blue Bird Propane Vision buses to districts in
(Photo: Vision-propane-cover2)
Calgary,Alberta, Canada -Green Car Congress -23 September 2014: -- Southland Transportation recently added 101 Blue Bird Propane Vision buses to its propane autogas school bus fleet. Districts in Canada are specifying the technology due to the superior cold weather operation, reduced maintenance and clean emissions, the company said. Southland Transportation is a subsidiary of the largest family-owned pupil transportation provider in Canada with operations in school, motor coach and public transportation... The buses, which are fully customizable, feature 60% less carbon monoxide, 12% less carbon dioxide, 20% less nitrogen oxide and up to 25% less greenhouse gases than gasoline. Propane autogas also costs about 35 to 40% less than gasoline and 50% less than diesel, and installing a propane autogas refueling station costs less than any other transportation fuel...
* Michigan - Stabenow, Levin: US giving Detroit $25.9 million to buy 50 buses, improve mobility for needy
(Video from Youtube: DDOT gets $25.9 million for new buses, more drivers)
Detroit,MICH,USA -Click on Detroit -Sep 23 2014: -- U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Carl Levin say Detroit's transportation system is getting a $25.9 million federal grant to help buy 50 new buses.
The Democratic lawmakers said that the grant comes from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Transit Administration.
Levin and Stabenow say the aid is part of the Ladders of Opportunity Initiative Grant program and seeks to help disadvantaged and low-income people, veterans, seniors and young people gain mobility and job opportunities...Labels: buses sales
TRUCKMAKERS NEWS * Canada / China
* Québec - TM4, a subsidiary of Hydro-Québec, makes a significant breakthrough in China
(Photo: Electric Buses, TM4)
Montreal,QBC,CAN -Newswire -Sept. 17, 2014: -- TM4, a subsidiary of Hydro-Québec, is pleased to announce that the joint venture it set up with its partner Prestolite Electric Beijing (PEBL) has made a significant breakthrough in China. Over the past few weeks, the company has received orders from major Chinese bus manufacturers for more than 350 SUMO electric motor systems... After two years of cooperation and exceptional performance and reliability test results, the joint venture created by TM4 and PEBL, Prestolite Electric Propulsion Systems (PEPS), received a firm order for 250 SUMO HD electric motor systems to power 12- and 18-metre buses for Foton, the largest manufacturer of buses in Beijing, China's capital...Labels: truckmakers' news
DANGEROUS TRUCKER * Russia
* Russia - Bus driver crushed against motorway barrier by careless trucker - who carries on driving
(See the anazing video here: The footage shows the bus driver trying to overtake the slower moving lorry on the highway through north-western Russia's road)
Smolensk Oblas,Russia -Yahoo News –Sep 2, 2014: -- A stunned bus driver managed to film the moment his vehicle was crushed against a motorway barrier by a careless Russian trucker... But as he starts to draw level, the truck - apparently oblivious to the bus - switches lanes, sandwiching the packed coach against a steel barrier... The bus blasts its horns, but the trucker - still not noticing the crunch - keeps going... One online commenter who viewed the footage: ‘You can see how hard the bus was hit because it starts stripping away the steel barrier like a row of toothpicks. The trucker veers to the left, forcing the bus driver towards the barrier... 'It's amazing that the driver managed to keep enough control to stop the vehicle’ ... The video shows the truck eventually pulling over, several hundred metres down the road... Police spokesman Gregory Yudin said: 'A truck driver is being interviewed over an allegation of dangerous driving. The video footage, which all vehicles are required to have by law, is being assessed to see who was at fault, and whether anyone will face charges' ... Labels: dangerous drivers
