Stagecoach has started to disperse the fleet of Mercedes-Benz Sprinter City 45s that were formerly used on its Little and Often network in Ashford. They were removed from service in Kent in June after the operator said that larger vehicles were required.
10 have been repainted in Stagecoach’s standard livery and moved to its North Scotland fleet for use in Aberdeenshire, Caithness, Moray, Orkney and Skye. Others have gone to Stagecoach’s North West and South Wales subsidiaries.
Those in Scotland entered service in September. Says Stagecoach North Scotland MD David Liston: “We received feedback from local communities that modern, smaller buses would be their preference for some of the shorter trips that we operate.
“Low-floor access, including a dedicated space for wheelchair users, will improve the attractiveness of local services in many of our communities, especially for customers travelling with shopping as well as those with reduced mobility.”
The Sprinters will be used on local service work and school contracts.