Yesterday Stagecoach Group announced its record-breaking order for 584 new buses and coaches worth £71million. The firm also announced that it is to invest in greener technology in order to meet new, more stringent, EU emission standards.The first part of the £71million order will see nearly 500 vehicles with a total value of more than £60 million from manufacturers Alexander Dennis (ADL), Optare, MAN, Plaxton, Scania and Volvo. The remainder of the order will be confirmed later this year. Around 220 of these vehicles will meet the Euro5 emission standard at least 1 year before the new ruling coming into force (1 September 2009). The vehicles in this first order will start to be delivered from next month with completion due at the end of April 2009.
Former Grimsby-Cleethorpes Transport managing director, and now Stagecoach UK Bus managing director Les Warneford, said, "We believe there is huge potential to encourage more people to reduce car use, get back on board the bus and help address the challenge of climate change. By re-investing our profits in greener bus technology, we will make our own operations more sustainable and help reduce the carbon footprint of our customers."
Stagecoach estimate the number of passengers travelling on its bus services has risen year-on-year by approximately 3%.
Details of the initial orders are:
150 x ADL E400 (Cummins) chassis/Enviro 400 to Euro5 spec
56 x Scania 230UD Enviro 400 to Euro4 spec
38 x ADL Enviro 300 chassis (12m)/Enviro 300 to Euro 5 spec
120 x MAN 18.240 chassis (12m)/Enviro 300 to Euro4 spec
25 x ADL Enviro 200 chassis/Enviro 200 to Euro5 spec
32 x MAN 14.240 chassis/Enviro 200 to Euro 4 spec
9 x Optare Versa to Euro4 spec
4 x Optare Solo 9.5m to Euro4
50 x Optare Solo 8.5m to Euro 4 spec
7 x Volvo B12B (12.3m)/Plaxton Panther to Euro5 spec
4 x Volvo B12B (15m)/Plaxton Panther to Euro5 spec
TOTAL 495
All of the new vehicles will run on a blend of 5% biodiesel and 95% mineral diesel, which Stagecoach uses in conjunction with the fuel additive Envirox to achieve fuel efficiency savings and emissions reductions of around 5%.
All vehicles will be low-floor, one step access and all coaches will be equipped with wheelchair lifts as per the legal minimum requirement.
