Van Hool T coach range to be retained under VDL ownership
Confirmation that the Van Hool T range of coaches will largely continue in production under VDL ownership has been received after several months of uncertainty.
A new VDL Van Hool website and brochures with branding from both businesses show that the T15 Acron two-axle and T16 Astron and T17 Astron tri-axles remain on offer in left- and right-hand drive alongside the established TDX21 Altano overdecker and TDX27 Astromega double-decker. A T17 Acron and TDX25 Astromega will also be built in left-hand drive only.
The EX range is not mentioned on the new website. It is understood that the EX will come to an end after deliveries of residual coaches conclude. The 10.8m T11 Acron is similarly absent, suggesting that it too will not be retained.
Commenting on the development, a VDL spokesperson has told routeone: "Our position since the acquisition has been that we continue to carry the Van Hool brand. That has not changed.
"The models on our new VDL Van Hool website are the models we are now continuing with. Just two of the chosen models are not right-hand drive."
A confirmed future for the T line-up represents a turnaround from a position shared with Van Hool customers in the UK earlier in 2024 after VDL purchased parts of the Van Hool coach and bus business out of bankruptcy.
At that time, at least one customer was told that the T16 Astron would be dropped and that a risk existed of the T range in its entirety coming to an end. More recently, that position looked to have been reversed after strong hints were heard of a future for the T after all.
It is understood that a decision by VDL to take the latter option came in recognition of the T range’s versatility across multiple use cases, including those at the top of the market. The line-up debuted in late 2022.
The new website indicates that sales of Van Hool coaches are currently being handled centrally from the manufacturer's premises at Koningshooikt in Belgium, that formed part of the sale to VDL.
However, it advises that “if available,” enquirers will be passed to local sales points. VDL Bus and Coach UK has been handling pre-delivery work on T coaches that are for delivery to buyers here.
VDL Van Hool will attend Euro Bus Expo at the NEC Birmingham on 12-14 November, where it is to show a T16 Astron and a TDX21 Altano.
Burnham visits Mellor as TfGM indicates UK focus for bus orders
Seven more Mellor small buses will enter service on the third tranche of bus franchising in Greater Manchester from January 2025, with Mayor Andy Burnham (pictured, centre) having recently visited the manufacturer’s plant in Rochdale to inspect those vehicles.
They will join 21 Strata models on the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter underframe that are already in service on existing franchised routes. The seven further buses are part of what Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) says is “hundreds of new vehicles being manufactured in the UK” for the Bee Network.
The contracting body adds that franchised bus services in Greater Manchester are creating “a new model for driving economic growth and boosting the UK’s homegrown manufacturing industries.”
Those words follow concern from Alexander Dennis about other orders with public subsidy that are being fulfilled outside the UK, although not all the buses on order for franchised services are being built here.
In visiting Mellor in Rochdale, Mr Burnham met some apprentices who have seen positions created thanks to the orders for Bee Network buses. The procurement has supported 15 new apprenticeship roles at Mellor.
“I was particularly pleased to meet the young apprentices with bright futures ahead of them and who are benefitting thanks to the Bee Network. As we develop our plans to transform technical education through the MBacc, we want to encourage even more young people into the industry," he says,
Such transformation includes work underway to create “clear pathways for young people into diverse, skilled careers offered by creation of the Bee Network MBacc pathway,” TfGM adds.
The Mellor apprentices are following an 18-month programme in collaboration with Hopwood Hall College. They will rotate across various departments at Mellor and are the first cohort of recruits under the new Woodall Nicholson Apprentice Scheme. It will lead to a qualification as a vehicle converter.
Suggesting that Bee Network new bus procurement is now focused on UK builders, Mr Burnham says that the region is “proving how investment in public transport supports economic growth, not just in Greater Manchester but across the UK, with franchise contracts and bus orders helping to secure jobs and deliver new ones – like those at Mellor.”
Of other UK manufacturers, Alexander Dennis is building 415 buses for the Bee Network. Wrightbus is manufacturing 162.
TfGM adds that the Mellor small buses delivered and an order will work services that “were often not prioritised by operators before franchising, with companies tending to target busier, more profitable routes.”
Go-Ahead Group to use CitySwift across UK and Ireland bus ops
The Go-Ahead Group will deploy the CitySwift public transport performance programme across all its bus operating companies in the UK and Ireland after success at East Yorkshire Buses, Go North East and Oxford Bus Company.
CitySwift’s platform uses what the supplier says is intelligent data processing to make timetables more efficient and maximises service reliability and punctuality via provision of the necessary “rapid and reliable” insights to deliver that.
At the three operating companies where CitySwift has already been utilised, the operator says that punctuality has risen by up to 14% and patronage by 4%. Scheduler productivity has also improved.
CitySwift will be rolled out on a phased basis across other Go-Ahead subsidiaries beginning in Q4 with Go North West and the soon-to-mobilise Kent Fastrack operations. All other regional operations will follow by 1 January 2025, with Go-Ahead London being captured in February 2025 and Go-Ahead Ireland later next year.
Says CitySwift Co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer Alan Farrelly: “Our mission is to make public transport the travel mode of choice for citizens across the UK and beyond. This partnership with the Go-Ahead Group marks a milestone in our journey as we continue to build the smart cities of the future.
“We have worked with Go-Ahead Group since 2020, seeing tangible results across the companies that implemented our technology in achieving more efficient, faster and reliable bus services.
“It is fantastic to have the opportunity to take this further, and have our platform deployed across all [bus] companies in the Go-Ahead Group in the UK.”
Adds Go-Ahead Group CEO, Bus, Matt Carney: “We are committed to continuously improving service reliability and punctuality for the tens of millions of customers who use our services across the country. Using the CitySwift AI-powered platform to optimise our schedules and timetables will help us to achieve this.”