Australasian Bus & Coach Issue 340

One of the ‘interesting cultural differences’ I have encountered while living ‘overseas’ is the phrase: “Australia shuts down after Melbourne Cup Day”. It was an offhand comment made in passing in the office — probably an attempt at a joke — but has managed to stick with me over the last few years. I think this is because this is absolutely not true in any way, shape or form (in the publishing world, at least) and it is still bizarre there is a public holiday for a sporting event (day off for the AFL final anyone?). For those who have continued the daily grind since this year’s Cup, you would know there is no rest for the industry. In fact, the Bus Industry Confederation (BIC) 2015 National Conference was held…

A fleet of new double-decker buses will travel, at least every 10 minutes during the day, from new bus stops between Sydney’s northern suburbs and the CBD, according to an announcement made by the New South Wales Government. Premier Mike Baird says services on the new 27km bus rapid transit (BRT) network called B-Line are expected to be up and running by late 2017. “The B-Line will transform bus travel on the Northern Beaches and in just two years customers will be able to rip up their timetable and catch a bus at least every 10 minutes,” he says. “New double-decker buses will have plenty of comfortable seats, architecturally designed B-Line stops will include modern facilities and real-time service information, and customers will be encouraged to park and ride with…

Gold Coast bus operator Transit Australia Group (TAG) has won business of the year at the Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards recently. Bustech, which is owned by TAG, was praised for launching the country’s first full electric bus and is now working to deliver an electric bus network in Malaysia and has similar plans for the United Arab Emirates in the pipeline. The operator edged out several other Gold Coast service providers and could not be happier with the honour, or the year it’s had overall. TAG CEO Michael McGee says the company is very excited about the win. He is confident the demand for electric buses will increase rapidly in Australia and is seeing huge interest from overseas. The aim of developing a fully electric bus was to realise…

Inter-city bus travellers in New Zealand will soon be spoilt for choice, with more services between top destinations added to meet ongoing demand and just in time for summer. NZ’s inMotion Group has added a morning service between Auckland and Wellington and a new overnight service from Christchurch to Queenstown. The added Christchurch to Queenstown service should make coach travel an attractive option for more wanting to enjoy a weekend getaway in the South Island. There will also be two journeys each day between Napier and Wellington and vice versa, and the addition of more services has come in response to steady patronage increases around the country. Twelve daily journeys each way between Hamilton and Auckland are being utilised by regular commuters as well as visitors, as the drive is…

Coach operator Greyhound Australia signed a deal to help up-and-coming courier business move parcels between Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide recently. The arrangement sees Greyhound Australia joining forces with Zoom2u, a company launched in 2014 that offers next-day parcel delivery and three-hour delivery options. “I’m excited to announce a partnership with Greyhound Australia, allowing us to move parcels between capital cities throughout Australia,” Zoom2u CEO and founder Steve Orenstein says. “The partnership will allow us to use our own couriers to deliver to the Greyhound bus depot, placing the parcel on a bus to be delivered to the depot in another city and our couriers can pick up and deliver to our customers each day.” “What’s great about this service is that we are using an asset that was already…

An upgrade of the transport interchange at Balmain East, building on the new wharf that opened this year will start in 2016, the New South Wales Government announced recently. Bus and ferry users provided feedback on the plans for the project when they were placed on public display last month, which has helped to inform the design. Residents using the public transport hub will benefit from a new accessible ramp and stairs to the newly upgraded ferry wharf, a widened turning circle for better bus access, an improved bus shelter and upgrades to lighting and CCTV. Feedback was considered and as a result, some design changes have been made to improve the visual appearance of key features. Bus services will be affected, but a shuttle will take passengers to the…