The Australian bus and coach industry is on the brink of monumental change with the ongoing transition to zero-emissions solutions.
Bus Stop Sales is one supplier that strongly desires to be at the forefront of this transformation. The bus and coach distributor’s commitment to sustainability both in bus products and at its Rocklea head office has now won multiple awards for its self-funded sustainability projects.
“With a deep understanding of the industry and focus on innovation, we established Bus Stop Sales to customise solutions for our valued bus and coach customer base,” director Pete White told ABC.
“Initially, the company focused on importing and distributing a single-make bus. However, as destiny has a way of working, we quickly outgrew this model and are now known to be the only end-to-end supplier catering to the diverse industry needs for 12 to 70 seats, diesel or electric and high-floor coach or urban city bus solutions.
“Our collaboration with the world’s largest bus manufacturing group, King Long is a best case partnership model that has set the stage for the transformative journey.”
All parties understand that a partnership needs to be win, win, win across the manufacturer, distributor and customers.
The partnership between Bus Stop Sales and King Long also allowed the former to work with the first movers in battery electric buses, with King Long being well ahead of its time in the space. The early adopters of the technology were centred in China in the late 1990s and early 2000s, with King Long building the earliest hybrid bus in China in 1997 and full electric battery electric bus capabilities in 2002.
The combination of the two brands in Australia has allowed Bus Stop Sales to gain momentum and help lead the Australian industry’s solutions for the zero-emissions transport transition.
“We’ve made significant investments into ready-to-go electric bus stock despite the transition being slower than we had hoped. Policy and commitment clarity is crucial to support the uptake,” White says.
Bus Stop has a raw passion for accelerating the uptake of new-energy buses, whether it be fully imported, domestically assembled or built by Australian content manufacturers.
“King Long is proud to have been in Australia for 16 years and is committed to being here for the long haul. We strive to support the market with the best solutions to meet operators’ needs,” Xiamen King Long director for Australian market share Harvey Zheng says.
“Our strategy has been built on customer choice and the provision of a great product and customer centric aftersales support alongside our distributor. Our goal is to be the best end-to-end solutions provider for the industry.”
While price parity with diesel is still yet to come for electric models, Bus Stop has ticked off the quality side of the equation, with King Long consistently noted as a leading global bus brand for producing battery electric buses.
“With King Long, we work together, focusing on customer requirements and how we can create long-term value for our partners,” White says.
At the distributor level, White isn’t purely focused on buses – he desires to lead a sustainable revolution in public transport while tackling climate change. The director lives these values daily and has demonstrated through implementing hundreds of initiatives within his organisation across both management and company loan cars, large investments into on-site battery and solar projects, rainwater collection and waste reduction projects at Bus Stop’s Brisbane Bus Centre in Rocklea.
“Uptake has been accelerated as I don’t answer to a board with prolonged business case requirements,” White says.
“It was just the right thing to do commercially and socially, so we moved quickly, and I had no hesitation using personal funds to live the values we hold close to our hearts.”
These moves proved critical when Bus Stop was acknowledged as the winner of the 2023 Queensland Bus Industry Council (QBIC) Innovation and Environmental awards for sustainability.
White is now intent on allowing electric buses to soon become the spine of Australia’s urban, short haul and on-demand transport industry.
“As cities worldwide commit to reducing their carbon footprints and improving air quality, the pressure has mounted on the transportation sector to innovate,” he says.
“Hydrogen is not on our immediate radar – the proposition across economic, technological and environmental arenas have yet to compel significant investment.”
White says electric buses represent a significant technological leap, producing zero tailpipe emissions, requiring significantly less resources per km and having a total cost of ownership (TCO) model that provides a compelling business case on paper. He says ZEBs are proven to work every day and are ready for deployment on mass right now.
White says he began advocating for electric buses before they dominated industry discussions. His foresight proved critical in positioning both Bus Stop Sales and King Long at the forefront of the electric revolution in Australia and his group invested early to design and deliver the first sustainable electric school bus in the private education sector.
This hasn’t been without its challenges – White says the infrastructure that needs to be upgraded to support widespread operator adoption, particularly away from their home, hasn’t been adequately developed, meaning careful planning is needed to match the e-bus solution for real-life mission requirements .
While the initial cost of electric buses remains high for operators, White has been proactive in building partnerships with infrastructure suppliers, government agencies, local councils and private companies within the e-bus ecosystem.
“One of the key strategies we undertook was to collaborate with others early across suppliers, technology, energy providers and operators to refine the range of products and solutions available,” White says.
“We identified early that bus supply is only a small piece of the transition journey, and it’s probably the easiest part of the fleet transition journey. While we can supply within months a high volume of buses to our partners with complete imported bus solutions, for successful deployment of our products, we need the infrastructure to be there.”
Coming from “Australia’s longest-serving bus sales family”, White is confident that his organisation can play a role in pushing past these infrastructure challenges and forging an electric future. He knows that the market is rapidly changing and White is calling on all involved to continue looking beyond traditional ‘lanes’ to collaborate and work across the ecosystems to make the transition easier for operators.
“We’re already exploring partnerships and pilot projects to bring autonomous electric buses to Australian cities, positioning Bus Stop and King Long at the cutting edge of transport technology,” White says.
“We have world-class product options with King Long, all available now – however, we are focused on the fundamentals of our existing range before range expansion.
“I’m passionate about promoting sustainability throughout the entire life cycle of buses, including exploring the use of renewable energy sources for charging, implementing battery second life and recycling programs plus advocating for sustainable manufacturing practices.
“By taking a holistic approach to sustainability, we want to ensure that the electric bus transition is truly transformative and benefits the environment in multiple ways.”