ADL delivers rapid new fleet for Go Cornwall tendered service

Alexander Dennis is providing 92 new buses to Go-Ahead Group subsidiary Go Cornwall Bus for a new tendered bus network. Forty-four of the batch were delivered for the start of operation on the Transport for Cornwall network on Sunday 29 March, less than three months after it was announced by the county council as the new operator of all its tendered bus services.

A further 48 buses, including 17 Enviro400 double-decks, will follow in coming months. These were initially expected by June but their completion may be delayed by the temporary suspension of production at ADL’s British manufacturing sites in response to government advice on social distancing.

“Setting up the new Transport for Cornwall network in less than three months would have been a formidable task even without the impact of current events, but Go Cornwall Bus have fully risen to this challenge,” says Martin Brailey, ADL regional sales director London & the South. “We are proud to have been chosen to provide the new fleet of buses, and our flexibility and ability to support customers’ requirements allowed us to have 44 of them ready in a matter of weeks.”

Richard Stevens, managing director, Go Cornwall Bus and Plymouth Citybus, adds: “With tight timescales for the contract the two biggest worries would be getting enough drivers and buses. The deal for 92 new buses eased the strain of the second, although a huge amount of work has gone into getting a brand new fleet on the road for 29 March. With the reduction in service due to COVID-19, we have managed to not use any borrowed buses, but go live with what is a brand new fleet. We look forward to phase two and for Transport for Cornwall having the newest fleet in the country.”