Showmanship

Omnibuses2.0 reports from Bus & Coach Live 2007

The show’s over, of course, but the star of Bus & Coach Live was this Optare Solo SR. Continuing Optare’s reputation for flair, we liked the re-worked and heavily swept back frontal effect. We suspect, though, that people will either love it or loathe it. Here, there’s no room for middle ground. Optare simply doesn’t give that option. One thing it will do is make passengers look twice.

The use of digital destination equipment gives Optare the opportunity of placing the box behind curved glass, though operators may specify an upright box if they wish. Borrowing its styling cues from last year’s launched Versa, the simpler panelling beneath the window and around the wheel arch was not only attractive but more practical. Tastefully, Solo SR dispenses with the traditional Solo front grill and replaces the usual twin round headlights with a modern cluster.

The SR at 8.9m or 9.6m joins the Solo range not as an overdue replacement (though it’s widely believed it eventually will) but as a high-end addition. It brings the nine-year-old Solo range, which first saw the production light of day at Wilts & Dorset, to an amazingly high 28 variants. It retains the lowest entrance step in the business, even without the kneeling mechanism. SR also promises lower engine noise.

Meanwhile, one of the first of Stagecoach’s Versas was on display. It’s flooring over the front axle is strangely convex, meaning boarding passengers rise up slightly and then down again to reach the seating area. Note that there’s little frontal area in which to display a livery, branding or operator name. See comments left on Tuesday’s post.


Additional photos by Omnibuses’ Northern Correspondent.