One of the hardest days for a parent is sending their child off to school for the first time.
New backpacks stuffed with stationery and homemade snacks, the parent handing over responsibility after years of care.
While the experience can be filled with emotion and dread, knowing a child is getting there safely can ease some of the worry.
- Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter to receive the latest news and classifieds from Australasia’s bus and coach industry
- Don’t miss a second and subscribe to our monthly ABC magazine
Over 20 per cent of school kids in Australia catch some form of public transport to school, with a large majority being buses.
Schools and operators have recognised the need for safe and reliable vehicles, often turning their focus to manufacturers like Challenger for vehicle purchases.
“We have been steadily supplying buses for school services for a while now,” Challenger Victorian sales manager Dan Campbell told ABC.
“It’s been amazing building relationships with schools across the country and providing them with high quality buses that will suit their needs.”
One of these budding relationships is with Maitland Lutheran School in South Australia.
With its third Challenger bus expected to hit the road in term one, the school has had an exceptional experience with the manufacturer so far.
“When we decided that we needed to uniform our fleet and prioritise keeping maintenance costs low, Challenger was one of the first places we looked at,” Maitland Lutheran School head mechanic Xavier Reynolds-verco told ABC.
“We had heard that Challenger builds buses that are easy to maintain and come with great aftersales care, and we were almost sold immediately.”
The thing that tipped the school over the line was the Challenger team’s eagerness to get them in front of one of the buses.
Driving a V12 interstate to the school, Reynolds-verco says he was blown away by their care and service.
“They hadn’t even closed a sale or anything at the point, but they were willing to drive all that way just so we would be confident in our decision,” he says.
“We are a country school, and they didn’t have to go to all that effort for us. But by doing that, it showed to us that we would be well looked after.”
When delivering its first V12 around 12 months ago, Challenger CEO Greg Sloan came by for the occasion, taking the time to sit with Reynolds-verco and explain anything he may need to know.
“He pulled me aside for 40 minutes and just went over everything – things that I might need to know and how to care for the bus,” he says.
“He was incredibly transparent, and you can tell he believes very strongly in the product they sell.”
Since then, Maitland Lutheran School now has two Challenger V12s in its fleet, with the third set to be delivered very soon.
Testing the buses on one of its more common runs from Maitland in South Australia to Point Turton, the school is now confident it can send the buses on some of the more rural paths.
“So far, the buses have been excellent. They run incredibly smoothly and are reliable, even in some of the more rural parts.
“We can trust that they will never let us down.”
One of the highlights of the buses, Reynolds-verco says, is how easy it is to install school lights.
“I’ve installed school lights to other buses, and running the cables to the rear is a real pain when everything like the trim is installed,” he says.
“But the Challenger buses come with all of that school bus wiring pre-installed in case it becomes a school bus.
“You just pull off rear covers and front covers, and there’s the wiring hanging there. It’s already got the module in it.
“Everything they have done for us has been gold.”
Maitland Lutheran School isn’t Challenger’s only happy customer, with Greg Bennett from Bennett Bus Service equally as thrilled with his purchases.
Running a school bus service for Tooleybuc Central School in New South Wales, he says his V10 was just what he was after.
“When I first enquired about possibly purchasing a bus, Dan Campbell put me in touch with companies that have already got them,” Bennett told ABC.
“I ended up getting a meeting with the people at Castlemaine Bus Lines and they couldn’t speak highly enough about Challenger.
“Every time I spoke to somebody about him, I was getting more and more sold on mine.”
Owning the bus now for around 12 months, the V10 has been fitted with 45 seats and is “the perfect school bus” according to Bennett.
A standout for the operator was the aftersales care he received after a small mishap with the headlight.
“Right before the quarterly inspection, I noticed the headlights wouldn’t work,” he says.
“I took it in and rang Dan up, who said they had never had that happen before.
“In no time, it was all fixed and I haven’t had any other dramas with it.”
Bennett says his experience with the team and the bus has sold him on Challenger, with future purchases a definite.
“I’ll tell anybody who wants to buy one too that they should come and have a look and have a chat to me,” he says.
“I am happy as buggery with it.”
Read more:
- Ritchies awarded $1 billion NZ bus contract, biggest in the country
- Victorian government defers all bus orders, extends bus lifespans
- Governments respond to Victorian bus order deferral
- New report calls out Transport for NSW for not effectively managing bus contracts
- Walgett community to benefit from door-to-door bus service