After another milestone year for bus and coach deliveries in Australia, the sector is off to a fast start in 2026 according to ABC’s deliveries data.
There were 155 deliveries recorded in January 2026, mirroring December 2025’s numbers. However, it is down from the mega start made in 2025 when there were 164 deliveries made in January last year.
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Yutong made a bright start to 2026, leading the way in the chassis sector with a total of 57 deliveries made. Out of the 57, 46 of these were heavy bus deliveries, while the other 11 were light bus. This saw Yutong finish ahead of Volvo, with the 2025 chassis leader recording 36 deliveries to start the new year, while Scania came in a tight third with 33 deliveries made. Outside of this, King Long claimed fourth with 10 units delivered, while BCI (eight) finished ahead of BLK (three), Challenger (two light bus deliveries) and BYD (one electric bus delivery).
It was a similar case of Yutong leading the way in the body builder sector, comfortably leading the way with its combination of 46 heavy bus and 11 light bus deliveries. Perennial body builder leader Volgren managed to hold off Scania Higer (23) to claim second with 26 deliveries, while BCI (11) claimed fourth ahead of Irizar and King Long, who both couldn’t be separated with 10 deliveries apiece. Marcopolo led the final pack with five deliveries, with the final 13 deliveries being shared across a peloton of six brands that included Express Coaches (four), BLK (three), Coach Design (two), Challenger (two light bus deliveries), Coach Concepts (one) and Global Bus Ventures (one).
There was also a new leader crowned in the seating market, as Yutong’s mega month of 57 deliveries seeing it claim first spot. However, usual winner McConnell couldn’t even claim the silver, as a wonderful start to 2026 by Sege saw it finish with 45 deliveries, ahead of McConnell’s 31. From there, the small market saw King Long claim fourth with 10 deliveries, ahead of StyleRide with eight and Fainsa with the four units.
The ever-tense air-conditioning market continued 2026 in a similar way to how it finished 2025, with some tight finishes captured in January. Cling-Yutong’s 57 deliveries saw it more than double the next best suppliers in a dominant display. After them, it got close, with Konvekta rising to second with 23 units delivered. Coachair came in third with the 20 units, while a three-way tie saw Thermo King, Hispacold and King Long all finish with 10 deliveries apiece. Spheros wasn’t far behind with the eight deliveries, while Denso, Valeo and BCC all claimed five deliveries apiece and Songz had the two.
The state-based battle also took a turn to begin a new year, with Victoria romping to the win with 58 deliveries made in January. New South Wales was demoted to second place with the 35 deliveries, while Queensland claimed bronze with 26. Western Australia was hot on its tail with the 21 deliveries, with South Australia reaching double digits with 10. The Northern Territory recorded four units for the month, with Tasmania finishing with a solitary delivery.
The power source split swung towards diesel units in January, with 146 out of the 155 deliveries featuring diesel technology. In this sector, Yutong led the with 57 deliveries ahead of Scania (33) and Volvo (28). Out of the nine zero-emissions bus deliveries recorded, eight of these belonged to Volvo while BYD also recorded one unit.
Click here to see all ABC bus and coach deliveries data.
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