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EXPRESS SERVICE – TASSIELINK TRANSIT

OPERATOR: Tasmanian bus operator Tassielink has been helping improve the daily commute for many passengers in the south of the state with a new express service between Huonville and Hobart. Not only this, but the service is being provided by two brand new Scania low-floor buses, providing access to the mobility-impaired and a more comfortable service for all.

Well-known Tasmanian metropolitan and regional bus operator Tassielink Transit has been running bus services on the Apple Isle since its beginnings in 1985, when Melbourne-based Invicta Group expanded south.

Having separated from Invicta in 2001, Tassielink is now a family run operation under the ownership of managing director Shane Dewsbery (fondly known as ‘Bubbles’ by the industry), after having worked in the company for 26 years.

Now operating the most extensive bus network in Tasmania, Tassielink services over 50 regional and remote towns and villages with commuter buses as well as charter services, and recently further expanded its offering with an express bus service in the south of the island, on which run two new Scania Express-bodied buses.

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GREATER CONNECTIVITY

These buses are the first additional services being rolled out over the next 12 months as part of the Tasmanian government’s Southern Projects initiative. This is a series of transport projects delivered by the state government as part of the Greater Hobart Traffic Solution.

“This is all about encouraging more people to use public transport and managing traffic flow along Hobart’s southern corridor by providing an end-to-end solution with faster and more frequent bus services,” said Michael Ferguson, Minister for Infrastructure and Transport in Tasmania.

“The package of integrated projects includes a dedicated transit lane on the Southern Outlet and clearways and bus priority measures on Macquarie and Davey Streets to improve the flow of buses to their destination; and park-and-ride facilities at Huntingfield and Stage 2 at Firthside, which will start construction soon.

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“When complete, they will provide the growing population in the Huon Valley and Kingborough regions, with real choice on how they travel and an attractive alternative to private cars. Our plan is to not only increase the use of public transport by commuters travelling to work from 6.4 per cent to 10 per cent, but to also reduce single occupant car journeys travelling into Hobart,” the Minister said.

The express service between Huonville and Hobart began operation in July, 2021, with four services each weekday morning departing Huonville at 6.05am, 7.05am, 8.05am and 9.05am, returning from Franklin Square in Hobart in the afternoon/early evening at 3.17pm, 4.17pm, 5.17pm and 6.17pm.

The service stops only eight times and the trip takes approximately 45 minutes to complete, which is a saving of 20 minutes per trip compared with the all-stopping route, it says.

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NEW BUSES

The two new Scania buses, delivered to Tassielink earlier this year, operate on the Huonville-Hobart weekday express service.

These are the final two of an order for eight buses delivered by Scania to Tassielink over the past two years, comprising four 320hp (239kW) 4×2 Euro 6 and four 310hp (231kW) 4×2 Euro 5, five-cylinder nine-litre vehicles.

The express service was designed to help to reduce traffic congestion in the Greater Hobart area by promoting and encouraging public transport options. Commuters have been demanding more express routes and greater comfort.

Huonville is located southwest of Hobart in the picturesque Huon Valley and is a burgeoning dormitory suburb for Hobart, 38km away, as well as being a popular tourist destination.

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The Express buses are low-floor accessible, which means easier access for mobility-impaired people, and also offer plenty of underfloor luggage space, designed to accommodate electric scooters or folding bicycles, as well as suitcases and backpacker rucksacks.

The interior fit-out includes coach seats, seat belts, parcel racks, luggage bins, USB chargers and air conditioning appropriate for Tasmanian weather conditions.

Featuring Scania Euro 6-compliant diesel engines – the most advanced diesel engines available – the low-floor urban buses will be highly fuel efficient and have cleaner exhaust emissions.

Tassielink now operates 30 buses and employs more than 50 people and is recruiting additional drivers to operate the new Huonville service and other services across regional Tasmania, it says.

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FIT FOR PURPOSE

Dewsbery says his team had put a lot of work into the design of the new vehicles.

“We have designed them to cope with our local roads and climate, and we worked closely with Scania and the body-builder,” he explained.

“Most of our fleet is Scania-powered and the drivers are very familiar with how they drive. Feedback from patrons has been very positive, particularly regarding comfort.

“We selected Scania as the supplier of the chassis and powertrain because we have had a long and successful relationship with them, and to us these relationships are very important.

“We have worked with Julian Gurney, Trevor O’Brien and Jamie Atkinson for many years and we trust their advice. We have open and close communication with them, they give us excellent back-up with parts and maintenance information and we see them as a critical part of our ongoing operations.

“When we wanted changes to the specification to meet our needs, Scania was flexible enough to meet our requirements. They understand our working environment and so they know when we need parts to have them ready. Scania also works well with our nominated bodybuilders.”

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STRONG PARTNERSHIP

“We anticipate the buses will cover around 120,000km a year, and will be serviced according to Scania’s schedule,” Dewsbery said.

“We anticipate covering around one million km over the next decade and, if our experience with Scania to date is any guide, the new buses will do this easily. We have 10-year-old Scania-powered buses on our fleet now and they haven’t needed refurbishment and they are still good on fuel.

“We get the weekly fleet reports from Scania as to how the vehicles are performing. Every Monday I look at the charts. It’s good to have a snapshot of performance that we can compare week-to-week and be able to see any exceptions, and it provides good information for the workshop in terms of identifying any issues before they become problems,” he said.

Scania Bus and Coach national sales and contracts manager Jamie Atkinson says the strength of the relationship between Scania and Tassielink was indicative of how the company does business and uses its full resources to ensure the customer gets what they want.

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“We are always pleased to support our customers with technical assistance when they come to plan new vehicles, and we have a strong, experienced and stable team in our bus division, who are able to leverage their knowledge for the customer’s benefit.

“When we take on a project such as these new buses for Tassielink, we not only want to ensure uptime through robust engineering, but also ease of maintenance and economy of operation,” Atkinson said.

“We’re confident that not only will the residents of Huonville enjoy the convenience of an express service into Hobart, but also the comfort of a chassis that has been engineered to suit the roads on which they’ll travel. If they never notice what’s going on below the floor of the bus, our job will have been done.”

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TASSIELINK’S JOURNEY

In July 1985, Invicta Group (John Usher) purchased Morse’s Bus Service in Devonport in its first step into the Tasmanian bus industry. The operation expanded with further purchases focused on servicing remote wilderness areas, such as Crandle Mountain in the north, Tag Along Tours in Hobart and Mountain Stage Line in Launceston, with the company renamed Tasmanian Wilderness Travel in 1989.

The ’90s and 2000s saw the purchase of further services before Tassielink Transit separated from Invicta Group in 2001. Shane Dewsbery took over operations in 2020, alongside the opening of new routes and timetables to improve the communities it serves.

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Throughout the years, Tassielink and its predecessor Tasmanian Wilderness Travel have won several Tasmanian Tourism Awards and have both been inducted into the Hall of Fame for their services to the Tasmanian bus industry.

As well as operating public transport buses, Tassielink also operates a range of charter services, with buses ranging in size from 12- to 57-seat. These service private group and school trips, shuttle services, half- and full-day tours, track and bushwalking transfers and cruise ship visits.

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Photography: courtesy Scania Australia

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