Celtic Travel welcomes a PSVAR compliant Scania Touring
Celtic Travel of Llanidloes in Powys has taken delivery of a Scania K360NI with Touring bodywork at 10.9m, supplied by Scania UK.
It has 42 seats, each upholstered in a half-leather scheme and with lateral movement at aisle positions. Magazine nets and drop-down tables are also fitted along with USB charging points and a floor-level rear toilet.
PSVAR compliance has been specified partly thanks to a lift mounted above the drive axle to give no luggage bay intrusion. The coach further comes with a Webasto coolant pre-heater along with vulnerable road user side protection via radar.
Celtic Travel’s distinctive green and white livery including the Welsh Dragon has been applied and the coach is completed by a cherished registration mark and polished alloy wheels.
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ShuttleID extends school bus pass platform to local authorities
Digital school bus ticketing platform ShuttleID has launched a package that is specifically for use by local authorities (LAs). It includes various features aimed at those users and comes with a no-obligation 90-day free trial period.
The move allows ShuttleID to support LAs across whole home-to-school service networks. A decision to expand into that market follows what the supplier calls “an unprecedented level of interest” from LAs over the past year.
A number are already signed up with ShuttleID and others are trialling the system. It provides e-ticketing, payments, service alerts, reports, live vehicle tracking, and boarding notifications.
QR codes generated can be displayed on a smartphone or a ‘brick’ phone or printed. Drivers validate the pass via an app and data is available to the LA in real time.
Among the public bodies to have signed up is the States of Guernsey. The system was put in place there primarily to handle a recent surge in school bus demand. That has created difficulties with pupils being unable to board due to insufficient capacity.
The problem is mitigated by ShuttleID providing the States of Guernsey with a simple method of capacity control via the digital passes. Reporting is helping to identify ‘dormant’ passes, allowing officers to better allocate capacity to users on a waiting list.
Says Senior Passenger Transport Officer Jonathan Guilbert: “ShuttleID provides an effective way of managing seating capacity on services. It is simple to use, both from a driver as well as a back-office point of view.
“We find the reporting features within ShuttleID very useful. Technical support of the system is excellent with queries responded to quickly.”
Mr Guilbert adds that parents find the real-time tracking function beneficial, while when travelling to school, children need only leave home when they know the vehicle is near. “This is particularly useful in bad weather,” he continues. “Parents also report that they like boarding notifications so they can be informed when their child has safely boarded the bus.”
Northumberland County Council is a further LA to have commenced using ShuttleID after a successful trial. It is in the process of scaling up the system across its home-to-school network. Passenger Transport Officer Thomas Bunting says that the platform is proving to be “a real gamechanger.”
He adds: “The system has enabled us to transition from a point where we had little or no data on travel permit checks or usage to where we now have access to extensive data streams that we can use to improve delivery of the service and achieve cost savings.”
ShuttleID has also had a positive influence on student behaviour, he says. “While we have to date only had a limited rollout of the ShuttleID product, it is clear that it is already offering us a fantastic solution in terms of the management and tracking of school transport.
“As a result, we are intent on extending its use across the entire school transport network, not just on our contracted PSVs but taxi and private hire vehicles as well.”
Plants Luxury Travel takes a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Transfer 45
Plants Luxury Travel of Cheadle in Staffordshire has added a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Transfer 45 minicoach to its fleet, supplied by EVM UK.
It is a 19-seater, with each position having a three-point belt and synthetic leather finish that includes diamond stitching. Folding armrests are to aisle sides and USB charging points are fitted.
Entry is via a sliding side door. An electric step is beneath it and the opening has a grab rail and a modesty panel. OEM saloon windows in privacy dark tint are retained, and access to the rear boot is via the originally fitted doors.
Air-conditioning is via both dash and saloon units, complemented by saloon heaters. A pair of luggage racks and Tarabus non-slip wood-effect flooring are further elements of the specification, along with passenger service units on the undersides of the former.
The driver of the Sprinter Transfer 45 benefits from a reversing camera that feeds to a seven-inch touch-screen dash display.
Externally, side skirts are fitted along with front and rear marker lights. Finish is in Mercedes-Benz selenite grey. A two-year, unlimited mileage chassis warranty is part of the package.
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