New Gold Bus service coming to Plymouth
Stagecoach South West has announced that, starting 30th September 2013, they are introducing two brand new ‘Stagecoach Gold’ routes which will operate between Torquay, Paignton, Totnes and Plymouth or Dartmouth. The introduction of the flagship ‘five star’ brand to Devon is a coup for customers, reserved for only a select number of locations across the country.
The two ‘Gold’ routes will operate up to every 30 minutes, seven days a week between Torquay, Paignton and Totnes. The routes will then connect the English Riviera to either Dartmouth or Plymouth via Ivybridge, with each location benefiting from an hourly service .
The company is also investing £2 million in a new fleet of nine high specification buses which will only operate on the Gold routes and will feature a distinctive gold and blue livery. The buses offer luxury as standard and feature extra legroom, high back leather seats and free Wi-Fi. The buses will also be fitted with Scania Euro 5 EEV (Enhanced Environmental Vehicle technology) engines that have even lower emissions than those required by the highest current Euro standard, making them among the most environmentally friendly vehicles on the road.
Stagecoach Gold is also characterised by its ‘Customer Promise’ which enshrines the service standards customers can expect from the company, vehicles and drivers.
Mike Watson, Managing Director at Stagecoach South West, said “We know that, particularly on longer distance journeys, comfort and reliability are essential so we are taking our services to the next level by introducing ‘Stagecoach Gold’. This is an incredibly exciting development for Devon and I can’t wait to see the new buses on the road”.
Further details about the new services will be released towards the end of August, in preparation for the launch 30th September. More information about Stagecoach Gold can be found at www.stagecoachgold.com.
We will all be watching to see what First do next as their X80 comes under direct attack from Stagecoach. They have tried before with their X45 which looked promising but First won that battle and the X45 was withdrawn. This looks a lot more serious! The Stagecoach Gold brand has been successfully launched in many areas and the buses in use are certainly well appointed and the livery is very eye-catching. If First are going to have any chance then they will need to up their game on the X80 which has never really been given the attention it deserves for such a main route. It may also provide a bit more competition for Plymouth Citybus with their 45 service.
It also adds to the fleet of high spec AD Enviro 400 double decker buses that operate in Plymouth joining Citybus’ new deckers (due in service 1st September) and First’s Park & Ride fleet. We are being spoilt at the moment. Its nice to see both Stagecoach and Go Ahead keen to invest lots of money on high quality buses for Plymouth. It would be even nicer to see First join the party – do they have the appetite for it?
www.Plymothiantransit.com for more info and pictures of the new Stagecoach Gold buses.
