More hybrid buses continue to roll out for London Bus services as Abellio London purchase 16 new Enviro400H MMC buses.
From Alexander Dennis
The strategic alliance between transport operator Abellio and bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis Limited (ADL) goes from strength to strength with a further 16 new Enviro400H double deck hybrid buses going into service in London this month.
The new hybrid buses will boost the Abellio London fleet towards the 800-vehicle mark, with 85% of those made by ADL. Business between the two companies now totals over £100m since 2011.
The transport group, which is owned by Dutch railway operator Nederlandse Spoorwegen and has bus and rail operations in Germany and the United Kingdom, clearly recognises the vital importance of developing business partnerships that deliver for all parties.
“Strategic partnerships are critical to our success,” says Alan Pilbeam, Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Managing Director of Abellio UK. “We need partners who are on the same wavelength, who can deliver products that are fuel-efficient, reliable as well as environmentally friendly, and who walk the talk in terms of price and aftermarket support.
“On all of these fronts, ADL has been with us every step of the way and has played a huge part in the expansion of our UK fleet by over 50% in the last few years. ADL shares our values in terms of putting customers first, backing promises with actions and delivering the low-emission products of today – while investing in the technology of tomorrow.”
Arthur Whiteside, ADL’s Managing Director UK Sales, says: “It has been a pleasure working with Alan and his team at Abellio as they have driven their business to a new level in recent years. They are at the forefront of strategic partnerships, taking the whole concept of operator-supplier relationships to a new level. Working hand in glove and understanding the wants and needs of customers is a critical part of the business equation and one we never lose sight of at ADL.”
Jon Eardley, Engineering Director for Abellio UK Bus, comments: “We have an open and honest relationship with ADL and that has been central to the success of our combined efforts. We set clearly defined targets, review performance regularly and address issues head-on. In short, we have high expectations at Abellio and ADL has stepped up to the challenge, all of which encourages consolidation around their product range.”
As bus companies win new route contracts, they have the option to purchase the bus type for their contract which best suits the conditions of the route including maintenance and operating costs. The New Routemaster ‘spin-offs’ such as the Wright SRM and Alexander Dennis Enviro400H City are available for bus companies to purchase, but they continue to purchase conventional buses such as the Wright Gemini 3 Volvo B5LH and Enviro400 MMC to suit their operating and maintenance costs.
Here’s a London Bus News update from LOTS:
1) Go-Ahead’s new EH-class E40Hs have been flooding into service from New Cross in the past couple of weeks, both the ‘ultra-caps’ and standard versions; they are spread over routes 36, 171, 172, 343 and 436. The next batch (EH285-310) of ‘ultra-caps’ for Stockwell routes 77 and 87 began delivery in the past week, while some of the StreetDecks (batch WSD2-23) at Merton are now in service on route 44.
2) Other batches where examples have been seen on delivery include Metroline’s Volvo B5LH/MCV VMH class due for routes 30 and 274 and BYD/ADL BEL-class due for route 46. As well as that, some of London United’s VH-class due for route 105 have also been noted on delivery.
3) In Hertfordshire. Universitybus’ six new Volvo B8RLE/MCV buses are now expected into service next week after a short hold-up in preparation and having been branded ‘Dragonfly’ for route 610 (Cockfosters & Luton). Arriva is to give up its minibus operation in Hemel Hempstead from 1st July, town services reverting to normal sized buses.
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