Editor’s Blog

Otokar and global bus manufacturer Daimler Buses have signed an agreement for the production of conventionally powered Mercedes-Benz Conecto buses at Otokar’s factory in Sakarya, Turkey, starting from September 2026. Till Oberwörder, CEO of Daimler Buses, Süer İsmail Sülün, President & CEO of Mercedes-Benz Türk A.Ş, and Aykut Özüner, CEO of Otokar were signatory to […]

Wrightbus has heralded the next generation of coachbuilders by welcoming 47 new apprentices to its Ballymena headquarters. They are embarking on a four-year apprenticeship including study at the Northern Regional College in Ballymena and Transport Training Services in Crumlin and will mix studies with on-the-job experience. The apprenticeships will enable the students to work toward […]

MPs from the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Buses and Coaches gathered in Old Palace Yard, Westminster in support this year’s Catch the Bus Month campaign led by Bus Users UK. Parliamentarians from across the political spectrum joined forces to promote the huge social, economic and environmental benefits of these vital services. Around 10 million […]

Black Cat Travel, a family business based in Harmston, just south of Lincoln has taken delivery of is its first ever brand-new double decker which has been christened ‘Smudge’ in the operator’s series of cat-themed names for its vehicles.  The new Alexander Dennis Enviro400 offers 85 seats with three-point belts and USB charging ports. Its […]

Starting with two secondhand MCW Metrobuses, the business now has a fleet of more than 100 vehicles and employs over 200 people delivering 38 services spanning Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Surrey. Twelve years after it was founded, Carousel Buses was purchased by the Go-Ahead Group – one of the UK’s largest bus operators – for […]

The tax burden on SMEs has rarely been as great, and hiked further by the additional National Insurance added by the current government. Added to the legislative burden, the cost and additional paperwork required from each coach and bus operator – and a myriad other businesses – is truly epic, and showing no sign of […]

The Campaign for Better Transport’s appeal for better, standardised bus stops deserves to get traction, and not just so that bus stops are functional. The bus infrastructure is creaking at the seams, with any new bus station serving only to shame the others. The country is spending hundreds of millions on installing council control and […]

The panel discussion about the future for coach – covered in our 29 November magazine – proved a worthwhile diversion from the metal on show at Euro Bus Expo. The premise was to ask ‘are we there yet?’ and I think the conclusion was that we aren’t. Where we are is about 20 miles from […]