After a relatively strong February, new buses delivered to operators in March shows a sharp decline, exclusive ABC data reveals
Deliveries dropped dramatically in March 2017 with just 55 brand new buses delivered throughout Australia.
This does not compare well with February 2017, during which 80 new bus deliveries were reported by chassis manufacturers, representing a decrease of 25 vehicles.
The March delivery number also stacks up poorly compared to the 86 new buses delivered in March last year.
Volvo had a sluggish month, its deliveries decreasing from 27 in February to 18 in March, followed by Scania’s 13 which was also down on last month’s 23.
MAN was a big surprise though, reporting nine deliveries for the month of March.
The majority of other manufacturers delivered less than four vehicles respectively, with Yutong dropping month-on-month from six to four.
In terms of body builders, Volgren led the way by a considerable margin with 16, which was down on the 26 reported in February.
Custom Bus had a strong showing with nine, up on seven the month before. The majority of other builders delivered less than five vehicles respectively.
On the air-conditioning front, Thermo King units were included in the delivery of 35 buses nationwide, a slight decrease on the 39 it posted just a month earlier.
Coachair had a decrease in February and was involved in the delivery of one bus. Spheros also dropped off slightly from 10 to six and Hispacold is equal to that number, which is the same as its result for February.
New South Wales and Victoria led the way on a state-by-state basis with 34 per cent and 33 per cent respectively, followed by Queensland (18 per cent) and South Australia (9 per cent). Western Australia had a much weaker month with 4 per cent – down from 19 per cent, followed by Northern Territory on 2 per cent.
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