Alan Peters, Managing Director of Bristol operator Abus, has praised the industry’s ‘community spirit’ following a fire at the company’s depot earlier this month.
In a statement, he said: “In the early hours of 5 November 2018, my company, Abus Ltd, suffered what could have been a catastrophic loss of two double-deck and one single-deck bus to an unexplained fire at our yard, which also put another vehicle out of action.
“Surprisingly, this brought about a series of events that has reassured me of the community spirit within the industry, the community and the professionals supporting it.
“I was overwhelmed with the offers of support from those within the industry, especially from Bath Bus Company and Reading Buses, who actually took a vehicle out of service to let me make use of it.
“The fare-paying customers of Bristol have been very supportive, as we have had to use smaller vehicles on some journeys to make sure the services continued.
“Larger vehicles have now been sourced, and all services were running normally within a few days.
“Our insurance broker, Gallagher, who specialises in the industry, was on the scene straight away and has worked closely with our insurers QBE to get the claim assessed and paid within a week of it happening.
“My thanks go out to everyone who has helped us through this difficult time and resolved it so expediently.”
