Showtime – 2

Omnibuses2.0 continues its look at Bus & Coach Live 2007

Like the new Optare Solo SR, another vehicle at Bus and Coach Live that provoked a strong like-it-or-loathe-it reaction was the Darwen Group’s Olympus double deck.

It made its debut last year, of course, as the East Lancs Olympus, on a Volvo B9TL for Delaine. Then, it was tucked a way. This time, it was literally centre stage. A recent comment on Omnibuses suggests the problems at East Lancs meant a further Delaine chassis has yet to find its body. Since 2006’s show, East Lancs has rather been through the mill, so to speak, emerging the other side as the Darwen Group.

There are few ELC Olympuses about, yet. Some for Metroline and open tops for Arriva, for example. The strikingly liveried Scania N230UD on display this year was one of 13 for Cardiff Bus and no matter what you thought of the Olympus’ extremely raked front, huge frontal glass area and front quarterlight, you had to agree it looked solidly built. A personal view is that, aside from East Lancs bodied Scania Omnidekka double decks, this is the best looking product to emerge from Blackburn in years. It’s single deck sibling Esteem is equally attractive, enhanced at the show by wearing Preston Bus colours.

The driver behind Cardiff Bus’ decision to purchase new double decks is peak time school children. Cardiff Bus needs to replace its ageing fleet of Ailsa deckers. It’s perhaps a little unfair to say it but the vehicle, with its plush seating and modern, bright, opulent and well finished interior, was almost too well finished for school pupils. The buses will find their way onto other duties between school peaks, of course.

One area of disappointment common to all low floor double decks irrespective of manufacturer was the number of seats on the lower deck that were actually fully accessible. You needed to climb a plinth or dais to reach all but four of the 21 forward facing seats. There were three accessible tip ups. Do modern designs really assist accessibility for older people?

Whether Darwen was right to sweep aside a troubled past with a new name or stick with the established East Lancs remains to be seen. After all, few in the industry will easily forget the recent problems in Blackburn, whatever the title. Will it take more than a name change to boost confidence again? Let’s hope Darwen Group can bounce back. We need a variety of builders.

Additional picture by Omnibuses' Northern Correspondent