North Dorset Travel, which in 2016 will be celebrating its 95th anniversary, is a family owned and operated business, currently under the charge of the third generation of the family.
The new vehicle is the third Volvo Bus 9700 the company has purchased, having had one of the original prototypes in operation since 2005, with a further coach being bought a few years later.
Richard Green, Managing Director and Partner of North Dorset Travel, said: “We’ve had an excellent experience with the Volvo 9700, it is a beautiful coach and we really like it, but most importantly, our customers absolutely love it – it really does have the ‘wow’ factor – which is why we were so pleased to purchase our third.
“In addition, the Volvo B11R chassis provides us with excellent fuel economy, which is an important consideration for any coach operator in today’s highly competitive environment.
“As ever, our Volvo Bus Retail Bus & Coach Sales Manager, Richard Mann, was great throughout the whole process from selecting our vehicle right up until final delivery and we’re delighted to be adding this new 9700 to our fleet.”
Destined for use on a range of contract work, including independent schools, North Dorset Travel’s new 9700 is 13.1m in length with a tri-axle arrangement and has 53 passenger seating capacity. A centre-situated toilet is among a wide range of the latest interior features as expected by today’s seasoned coach traveller.
Richard Mann said: “North Dorset Travel is a highly valued and established customer of Volvo Bus and we’re delighted they’ve chosen our integral 9700 B11R as their latest vehicle.
“It’s also great to be working with an operator with such a long and distinguished heritage and record of providing coach services to the community. We’re sure this new Volvo B11R 9700 will help them continue with their excellent service to their customers.”
North Dorset Travel is based in Poole and was established in 1921. Today it prides itself on delivering its customers with a high quality service
ENDS
17 November 2015
Caption for image:
North Dorset Travel 1: The new integral Volvo Bus B11R 9700 Euro 6 ex-demonstrator coach that has recently been delivered to North Dorset Travel. This is the third 9700 to be taken by the company and is to be used on a range of private hire work.
Editors’ notes
Model - Volvo B11R 3 axle Integral Luxury Coach with independent front suspension.
Body specification - Volvo 9700
Engine - Volvo Euro 6 D11K 430 or 460hp vertical rear engine. Emission levels comply with Euro 6 legislation. Engine Emission control uses SCR & EGR technology.
Transmission - Volvo I-Shift automatic with integral retarder.
Height - 3.75 m
Width - 2.55 m
Length - 13 m
Fuel tank - 600 litres
Technical standard - European Whole Vehicle Type Approval.
Body construction - Stainless steel frame and body.
Additional safety - FIPS – Front Impact Protection System features including FUPS – Front Under-Run Protection System, KIPS – Driver’s Knee Impact Protection System, ESP – Electronic Stability Programme
Driver’s seat - IIsringhausen with air suspension swivel feature, dual arm rest, integrated microphone and 3 point seat belt.
Courier seat - Volvo Superior comfort seat, height adjustable with 3 point seat belt.
Passenger seats - 53/55 Volvo Superior comfort Plus seats with adjustable footrest, sideways adjustment, leather headrests and piping, seatback table, magazine nets and 3 point seat belts to all seats.
Luggage capacity - 9.0 m3 approx
Glazing - Solar reflective bonded windscreen with high level third wiper, heated electric driver’s window, peage window, motorised windscreen sun blind, sun blinds and curtains to all side windows.
Air conditioning - Full saloon climate control air conditioning with separate control for driver’s compartment.
Additional features - Parallel action side hatches and central locking, Bi-Xenon headlamp with cleaning system electric roof hatches, LED floor level lighting, aircraft style luggage racks, demountable toilet compartment with hot air hand drier, smoke sensor, boiler and sink, drinks dispenser, 120 litre drinking water tank capacity (fitted in luggage area), European touring kit including spare mirror arm, bulb, tools, wash-down kit, Dura-Bright Alcoa alloy wheels.