New coaches for new era at Newport

Newport Transport has taken delivery of the first new coaches to launch its new express coach venture in partnership with FlixBus on 7 August.

The new Volvo 9700s have been branded for FlixBus. Newport Transport will operate the Flixbus services from South Wales to London Heathrow and Gatwick airports.

Newport Transport says the addition of the new coaches and the operation of an intercity express service route signal the start of a new era for the operator.

“The arrival of the new FlixBus coaches marks a moment in the company’s history as a municipal bus operator” – Morgan Stevens, Operations Director for Newport Transport

Morgan Stevens, Operations Director for Newport Transport says: “The arrival of the new FlixBus coaches marks a moment in the company’s history as a municipal bus operator. This is an exciting new venture, which will bring more growth opportunities for the business and therefore, more opportunities for our staff too.

“We are currently putting a new team of experienced coach drivers in place so that we can deliver a high-quality and professional Flixbus service. The team will work separately from our current private hire coach team providing consistency of service across the business.”

The Volvo 9700s will be used on daily routes between Welsh cities from Swansea, Cardiff and Newport as well as Bristol, then to Heathrow and Gatwick Airport and London. The coaches are PSVAR-compliant and have 53 seats, individual USB chargers, a toilet and temperature control.

“We’re excited to welcome Newport Transport’s drivers onto the FlixBus network” – Team Lead of Operations at FlixBus UK, Hayley Russell

Team Lead of Operations at FlixBus UK, Hayley Russell, said: “We’re excited to welcome Newport Transport’s drivers onto the FlixBus network.

“As a company, we are close to the drivers working for our operator partners – we know they are the face of our business and we want them to feel a part of the FlixBus family. My operations team spends a lot of time in coach stations getting to know our driving team and thanking them for their part in our growth!”

FlixBus is a travel tech company offering top-end digital tools for drivers to seamlessly navigate customer service and the road. Training is provided by the FlixBus operations team and Newport Transport. It will remain ongoing through its dedicated online learning platform FlixUni, to ensure drivers stay up to date with any developments.