ACT Bus Forum

Other Transport => Interstate & International => Topic started by: Qashqai on May 22, 2020, 04:38:36 PM

Title: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Qashqai on May 22, 2020, 04:38:36 PM
Hi Again Everyone,

Back on 16 January 2020 on the road to Adelaide, a shiny new ACTION bus (#690) passed us some kilometres west of Balranald NSW on the Sturt Highway.  It was very unexpected to find a brand new ACTION bus in Rural NSW.  Would I be right to assume that all new buses are driven to Canberra from the port instead of transported on a truck?  The only photos I have of BUS-690 are screenshots taken from Dashcam footage but are of reasonable quality for a bright summer's day at 4pm.  You can view these photos on my Google site page (link provided below).

Since then, just the other week I saw BUS-690 in service.

https://sites.google.com/view/actionbuses-canberra/home/16-january-2020

Kind Regards,
AJ
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Busnerd on May 23, 2020, 10:18:38 AM
These buses are being built in Adelaide and hence are driven to Canberra for delivery.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Qashqai on May 23, 2020, 11:02:39 PM
Thank you for your reply and answer Busnerd!  It's nice to read that these buses are made in Australia!  I thought as they're Scanias they would've been manufactured in Europe.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Snorzac on May 23, 2020, 11:17:48 PM
The chassis is imported from (I assume) Sweden, the bus body is Australian designed by Bustech and assembled under licence by Precision in Adelaide. The only buses fully imported (aside from the stored Darts) currently in the fleet are 100, 101 and 490
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Qashqai on May 24, 2020, 09:19:17 PM
Thanks for that information Snorzac!  It's great to see we still manufacture/assemble vehicles here in Australia (even if it's just the bodies!).  So the Darts were fully imported?  Do you know in which country they were built?  It's a shame they were withdrawn so soon, I discovered some didn't make 20 years of service.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Sylvan Loves Buses on May 24, 2020, 11:27:57 PM
Quote from: Qashqai on May 24, 2020, 09:19:17 PMIt's a shame they were withdrawn so soon
Quite a number of people would disagree with that statement, hahaha!


If it helps, quite a bit of information on the buses ACTION/TC owned is on the Fleet wiki (http://www.actbus.net/fleetwiki/index.php/Main_Page). I don't know who made the Darts though, the others on here will know that better than me.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Barry Drive on May 25, 2020, 10:25:30 AM
Quote from: Sylvan Loves Buses on May 24, 2020, 11:27:57 PMIf it helps, quite a bit of information on the buses ACTION/TC owned is on the Fleet wiki (http://www.actbus.net/fleetwiki/index.php/Main_Page).

The ACT Bus website (www.actbus.net) is a better source. For most recent bus models, there will be a Featured Bus article – in the case of the Darts, it can be found here: http://actbus.net/featured-bus-mar-apr-2017/
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: ajw373 on May 25, 2020, 01:55:10 PM
Quote from: Sylvan Loves Buses on May 24, 2020, 11:27:57 PMQuite a number of people would disagree with that statement, hahaha!


If it helps, quite a bit of information on the buses ACTION/TC owned is on the Fleet wiki (http://www.actbus.net/fleetwiki/index.php/Main_Page). I don't know who made the Darts though, the others on here will know that better than me.

The Body of the darts were built by Wright Bus hence the W on the grille. Wright bus is from the UK, Northern Ireland specifically.

The chassis are from Dennis they built them in England just outside London.

I say built in past tense as I am not sure who Dennis is part of these days, the company has been through many owners over the years since the Darts were made for Canberra.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Toyota Camry on May 25, 2020, 04:00:42 PM
Importing a bus from overseas is like putting an APS4 into a secondment as an EL1; it is a good thing that the disaster of the Dennis Dart buses has not been repeated en-masse. When these vehicles were operating, I was fortunate that they did not operate in the Gungahlin district; those in other districts were not so fortunate.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Sylvan Loves Buses on May 25, 2020, 06:09:58 PM
Quote from: Toyota Camry on May 25, 2020, 04:00:42 PMI was fortunate that they did not operate in the Gungahlin district

Oh they did, you just weren't paying enough attention.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: ajw373 on May 25, 2020, 06:41:30 PM
Quote from: Toyota Camry on May 25, 2020, 04:00:42 PMImporting a bus from overseas is like putting an APS4 into a secondment as an EL1; it is a good thing that the disaster of the Dennis Dart buses has not been repeated en-masse. When these vehicles were operating, I was fortunate that they did not operate in the Gungahlin district; those in other districts were not so fortunate.

Disagree wholeheartedly. Where the bus doesn't make a difference what makes a difference is it's suitability to the job. There are plenty of imported buses (and coaches) in this country that are just fine.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Qashqai on May 25, 2020, 09:10:32 PM
Hi All,

Thank you very much for all of your comments and answers to my question as my bus knowledge is very limited :-).  I read the Dennis Darts weren't a favoured bus.  I was unaware that the grille was shaped into a W, I thought it was just the design!  I can see the W loud and clear now.

What made the Government discontinue the Free City Loop?  Was it the introduction of the tram?

Kind Regards,

AJ
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Sylvan Loves Buses on May 25, 2020, 09:15:24 PM
Lack of patronage apparently, yet I thought it was booming.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Snorzac on May 25, 2020, 09:38:45 PM
The city loop was discontinued due to the new network, The Braddon part to basically force people onto light rail I believe. Nothing to do with patronage.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Qashqai on May 26, 2020, 10:45:50 AM
Thank you both for your replies.  What I find odd is that the light rail doesn't operate a city loop.......yet! :-)
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Stan butler on May 26, 2020, 07:16:00 PM
Quote from: Qashqai on May 26, 2020, 10:45:50 AMThank you both for your replies.  What I find odd is that the light rail doesn't operate a city loop.......yet! :-)

And it won't (not in the form of the previous city loop).  Don't hold your breath for it to go Woden either.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Qashqai on May 29, 2020, 01:02:53 PM
Thanks for your reply Stan Butler.  I don't think it will either (should they decide to build a light rail city loop).  I won't, I'll be really surprised for it to go to Belconnen too.  They should've just kept the (bus) city loop and operated them alongside each other somehow.  I'm sure Melbourne has a (bus) city loop although they have a decent tram network.  I know Adelaide does, with their small tram line.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: triumph on May 29, 2020, 11:11:33 PM
Quote from: Qashqai on May 29, 2020, 01:02:53 PMThanks for your reply Stan Butler.  I don't think it will either (should they decide to build a light rail city loop).  I won't, I'll be really surprised for it to go to Belconnen too.  They should've just kept the (bus) city loop and operated them alongside each other somehow.  I'm sure Melbourne has a (bus) city loop although they have a decent tram network.  I know Adelaide does, with their small tram line.

Melbourne does have a City Loop TRAM service. Rte 35, free, W class heritage trams. Operates both clock and anti-clockwise. Route Waterfront Term, Docklands Dr thence Harbour Esplanade to join loop at Latrobe St., thence Latrobe, Victoria, Nicholson, Spring, Flinders, reservation, Harbour Esplanade and back to Waterfront Term.. I am unaware if there is any bus route circling the inner City.

Logically, our light rail should have joined City and Belconnen as this would have been the route with the greatest demand potential, but there are other considerations (development, politics, electoral, etc.) impacting on decisions.

Adelaide network is growing with the traditional Glenelg route extended twice to reach the Entertainment Centre, and recently new branches to the Festival Centre and Botanical Gardens. This latter could well be the beginning of a City loop. In the mean time there is a free route section through the City. Small? It is of longer route length now than Canberra.
Title: Re: ACTION Bus #690 Seen On The Sturt Highway in NSW
Post by: Qashqai on May 30, 2020, 04:59:47 PM
Hi Triumph,

Thank you for your reply and information on Melbourne Trams.

Sorry what I meant with Adelaide was not the length of the network but the number of lines (compared to other cities).  Adelaide's tram line would definitely be longer than Canberra's.  When I was in Adelaide in October-November 2019 I caught the tram from the City to Glenelg twice. 

The first tram was Tram #110. 

The bus I took to the City for the first tram was Reg: WUY534 / Route 719, 2002 White M.A.N. 18280HOLL Rigid Bus.

The bus I took to the City for the second tram was Reg: XKB986 / Fleet #1220 / Route 144, 2006 White Scania L94UB4X2 Rigid Bus.

Kind Regards,

AJ