Three generations present as Star Coaches receives Yutong GT12
Star Coaches of Batley has taken delivery of a Yutong GT12, supplied by Pelican Bus and Coach and finished in the West Yorkshire operator’s award-winning metallic blue livery.
It was handed over in a special ceremony where three generations of the Dabhad family – owners of Star Coaches, which was founded in 1982 by Ibrahim Dabhad and his late wife Sabera – were joined at the operator's premises by three generations of the Crump family, proprietors of Pelican. The dealership was established by the late Ernest Crump in 1919.
The handover marked the strong family-based ties between Star and Pelican, where in both cases three generations of the founding family remain actively involved in each business.
Pelican Chairman Bob Crump is father of Managing Director Richard Crump and grandfather of Area Sales Manager Amelia Crump. Ms Crump negotiated the deal with Star Coaches Operations Manager Muhammad Dabhad.
Mr Crump Sr notes: “It is a very special pleasure for us to hand over this GT12 to Star Coaches, a family business that, like ours, places great emphasis on customer service and maintaining a strong family legacy in a multigenerational business.”
The PSVAR compliant GT12 carries a cherished registration and Star Coaches’ distinctive brand, which in its application to a midicoach was crowned winner of the 2024 routeone Livery Competition for vehicles in that size class during August.
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Noone Turas 500s minicoach joins Whites St Albans fleet
Whites St Albans has taken delivery of a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter with coachbuilt Noone Turas 500s bodywork, supplied by Jones Coach and Bus Sales.
It has 19 seats to a high specification and delivers what the dealership says is “absolute comfort.”
Each position is upholstered in synthetic leather with diamond stitching, padded shoulder sections, three-point belts, drop-down tables, magazine nets, folding armrests at aisle seats, and device holders.
Other amenities include USB charging points, wood-effect flooring and ambient lighting. Passenger access is via a powered plug door, within the opening for which is a courier seat.
The Noone Turas 500s for Whites is finished in the operator's standard metallic grey livery and it has rear and side luggage storage. LED headlights are fitted, along with a 9G-Tronic automatic gearbox and a Telma retarder.
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Peter Hogg adds two Scottish-themed Enviro200 buses
Peter Hogg of Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders has added two more Enviro200 buses to its fleet, built and supplied by Alexander Dennis.
One is a 9.7m 34-seat example and the other is a 10.8m variant with 40 seats. They have been manufactured at Alexander Dennis’s Scarborough factory to what is describes as a bespoke specification that includes printed tartan moquette, colour matched to hand poles as well as to exterior vinyls in a similar style.
Other custom elements in the Peter Hogg buses include seatbelts, USB charging points at every position, and a digital tachograph. In line with the operator's tradition of naming its vehicles after Disney characters, the pair have been christened King Fergus and Queen Elinor.
Director Annie Hogg collected the newcomers from Scarborough. She says: “We have been extremely happy with our existing Enviro200 buses and the attention and care provided by the Alexander Dennis team, which made it an easy choice to return for our fourth and fifth examples of the type. These are our best buses yet with their fantastic interior fit and finish.”
Adds Alexander Dennis Retail Sales Director Charlie Miller: “It has been a huge pleasure to bring Annie’s vision for these latest Enviro200 low-emission buses to life in collaboration with our partners.
“Camira used its revolutionary digital print capabilities for the moquette, and KDT Graphics provided the exterior vinyls, working closely together to make it all match perfectly.”
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