EBE10—Sales

Euro Bus Expo 2010 Index

I still maintain that there’s little actual, real, tangible order activity placed at the show itself. Sometimes, there’s a deal to be had on a vehicle on the floor. Mass orders, though, take time to consider and negotiate. Announcements made at the show tend to be timed for appearances.

That was no doubt the case for Lothian Buses. It announced the order of 60 Volvo B9TL/Wrightbus Gemini 2s, giving them over 400 in service or ordered since 2004.

Warrington Transport announced an order for no fewer than six (!) Optare Solos, replacing the remaining Optare Metroriders. It means 100 per cent of its main fleet is now SLF. It’s believed to have been swayed by the Wrightbus Streetlite—almost. Perhaps one reason for the Solo is that Optare is understood to have reduced the cost of its product, across the range. Previously, both buses were priced identically. The Wrightbus integral is unproven but does, of course, come with Wrightbus’ reputation.

And the other surprise large-scale order was… oh, there hasn’t been another, yet, other than a confirmation of Arriva’s Wrightbus order. Unless you know differently...