Overwhelmingly positive response to three week trial of Enviro500 in South Korean capital
SOUTH KOREA Three weeks of trials with an Alexander Dennis (ADL) Enviro500 in Gyeonggi Province have concluded with an overwhelmingly positive response from passengers, drivers and operating companies. Hundreds of passengers per day had the opportunity to travel in the double-decker on inter-urban routes between Suwon and Sadang, Namyang and Jamsil, and Gimpo and Seoul Station throughout December 2014.
Speaking at a briefing held at the British Embassy in Seoul, Paul Davies, Director and General Manager of ADL’s Asia Pacific operations, said: “The double deck trial was borne out of a search for buses with a higher seating capacity to meet the needs of the daily commuters. What we’ve proven is that the Enviro500 not only fulfils this basic requirement, it also brings with it many other benefits – most notably the improved access for wheelchair users, excellent fuel efficiency, outstanding manoeuvrability and the fact that it can carry twice as many seated passengers as the current single deck buses.”
The early indicators from online research commissioned by ADL prove that the double-decker was well received, with over 90% of respondents welcoming its introduction. Reasons for this include passenger enjoyment of travelling on the upper deck and the comfortable, spacious interior with increased seating capacity. On an operational level, the Enviro500 easily travelled on the designated routes without any infrastructure issues and the drivers adapted quickly to the characteristics of the bus, which are very similar to those of single deckers.
Davies continued, “We look forward to working with Gyeonggi Provincial Government, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and the Gyeonggi Research Institute as the project moves to the next phase.”
(BLOB) CBW reader Dave Rogers has advised that a previous generation of British double-decker demonstrated in Seoul survives. An Alexander-bodied Leyland Olympian tri-axle, it was unveiled in December, 2014 as the Sinchon Play Bus. Situated on the U-Plus plaza, it’s described as a “two story mobile-home that shows the different colours of the neighbourhood through music.” Korean music in the 70s and 80 to modern pop music features and users can listen using a variety of devices.
