Ministerial Statement: A little bit of London comes to the Gold Coast

[ozbob]

Transport and Multicultural Affairs
The Honourable Annastacia Palaszczuk
29/07/2011

A little bit of London comes to the Gold Coast

A revolutionary double-decker bus will be trialled on Gold Coast tourist bus routes in order to carry more passengers and boost awareness of public transport across the Gold Coast.

Transport Minister Annastacia Palaszczuk inspected the new locally-built bus - Australia's first low-floor twin steer, wheel chair accessible bus - at Southport this morning.

"Gold Coast tourists will be among the first to use this groundbreaking new double-decker bus which will run along the Gold Coast Highway between Tweed Heads and Southport ," Ms Palaszczuk said.

"The State Government has worked hard to support business and promote tourist growth and it's great we can transport tourists and commuters along the coast in world-class locally-made buses.

Ms Palaszczuk said the new double-decker would carry 96 seated passengers and run on route 700, run by Surfside Bus Lines.

"These new home grown double-decker buses are designed to be big on space, comfort and savings," she said.

"They not only carry more passengers than standard buses but also have the same footprint as a standard 12.5-metre-bus.

"They have comparable manoeuvrability compared to articulated buses thanks to an unprecedented engineering feat - two steering axles at the front and one fixed axle at the back."

"We expect to have the double-decker out on the road from mid August."

Megan Harkin, from Surfside's parent company Transit Australia Group (TAG), said Surfside was excited to be adding this Australian first to our fleet mix and also contributing to a greener public transport service.

"Our passengers and drivers will be impressed with the comfort and the quality finish of the product," Ms Harkin said.

"We have drivers lining up to be rostered to drive this remarkable vehicle."

The State Government, through TransLink, is funding the new double-decker bus at a cost of about $80,000 a year.

The bus is expected to operate on Route 700 between Tweed Heads and Southport starting mid-August.

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[ozbob]

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