Electric buses part of Australia-New Zealand arrangement

Australian and New Zealand distributor for Optare buses, Bus Corp Oceania (BCO) and Bonluck distributor Bus and Coach Sales Australasia (BCSA) have announced a tie up that will deliver national sales and service support for both.

Along with low tare weights Optare is also boasting a range of low-carbon buses using enhanced diesel technology or zero emission electric drivelines. Pure electric (EV) powered versions are available across the range.

It is also offering complete integration of telematics on critical operating and status parameters.

As part of the arrangement, BCO will become the Bonluck dealer for NSW, Victoria, SA, WA and New Zealand, while BCSA will become the dealer for Optare in Queensland and Northern NSW, handling sales and service for the brand in both regions.

The announcement of the expansion of the Optare and Bonluck dealer networks follows the recent establishment of BCO’s New South Wales office at Smithfield in Sydney’s west. It also comes as the company opens its new sales and support office in the Auckland suburb of Wiri where Joe Crickett will manage BCO operations for New Zealand.

The appointment of BCSA as Optare’s dealer in Queensland and Northern NSW and BCO’s sign on as the Bonluck dealer across the rest of Australia and NZ underlines the commitment to both Optare and Bonluck as serious players in the bus and coach markets down under, Bus Corp Oceania general manager Jason Pecotic says.

“BCSA has a long history in the bus and coach industry with a strong reputation for customer service and is ideally situated at Yatala near Brisbane to service the major Brisbane and Gold Coast markets as well as the larger Queensland and Northern NSW markets,” he says.

“Between them BCSA’s directors Rodd Hood and Athol McKinnon have over 80 years of experience in the bus and transport industry.

“BCSA’s vision is to be an innovative leading supplier of quality passenger vehicles with its core values being quality, safety, reliability and affordability which aligns perfectly with Optare.”

Since start up in mid-2017, BCO has grown from its base at its head office in Melbourne and has seen a surge of interest in the Optare product since its debut at the Bus and Coach Expo on the Gold Coast last September.

Pecotic says on a recent visit to the Bonluck factory in China he saw the full range of products being built to specification, including luxury coaches for Australia , articulated buses for NZ and nine-meter city buses being built for Australia and NZ along with coach bodies being built on European chassis for both Australia and NZ.

Optare recently began deliveries of a 114-bus contract for Tranzit in New Zealand’s capital Wellington.

Its line up of buses ranges from the entry level 27 seater 7.9 metre Solo midi model through the 9.9 metre Solo, the larger Tempo and flagship MetroCity bus along with a new double decker, the MetroDecker.

The latest technology Cummins turbo-diesels will power most Optare buses in Australia; mated with Allison automatic transmissions, while Mercedes Benz power is also available in some models along with electrics across the range.

Optare has nearly 100 years in bus manufacturing growing out of the famous Leyland brand.

Parent company, Ashok Leyland, is part of the Hinduja Group with annual revenues of $A2.5 billion, ranked among the world’s top four bus manufacturers.