For many parents around the world, it’s the question that keeps them up at night. It ensures frowns stay on and a crease of doubt appears most mornings. ‘Is my child getting to school safely?’
For parents and students based in Melbourne’s north-eastern suburbs, Panorama Coaches has been a comforting assurance, completing both private and government-contracted school runs each and every day. A key reason behind Panorama Coaches’ success in the area is the safety technology it uses on every school run.
Panorama Coaches, part of the Dineen Group, currently provides 85 private and government-contracted school runs twice daily and also deploys 420 bus movements per day on charter, utilising its fleet of more than 130 buses.
Of this fleet, 45 are Scania vehicles, comprising 23 Scania Tourings and 10 Scania-Higer A30s, five Irizar i6s, as well as a smattering of Scania chassis with local bodies, most inherited over time from amalgamation or take overs of smaller businesses. A batch of 15 new Tourings are expected to join the Dineen Group fleet before the end of the year, with several earmarked for Panorama Coaches. It all comes as Panorama Coaches redirects its government-contracted route business towards its bread and butter on the school side.
“We said goodbye to our route work and very quickly turned the page to a new chapter of growth. We put 19 route buses on the market a year ago, and most have been sold, the ones we’ll keep will be used for rail replacement work and so on,” Panorama Coaches long-time general manager John Griffiths told ABC.
“Then we looked at growing the school runs, and we were fortunate enough to pick up three more government schools and purchase two depots in Northern Victoria. We took over one of those on the first of July this year and another in the first half of August, adding 17 government-contracted school runs to the business.”
Griffiths says his loyalty to Scania is all about the bus brand’s ability to provide products that make running complex school services simpler and more efficient.
“Another side of our business is buying and selling fleet. We turn over about eight per cent of vehicles a year to maintain our average age, so about 10-12 a year, aside from new contracts. Our choice, and that of Dineen Group, is to go with Scania,” Griffiths says.
“Traditionally in the group we have had a selection of European chassis. But most definitely for the last few years we’ve been very much going to the Scania product, the Scania-Higer A30 and Scania Touring. They’re very, very suitable for the work.
“Most definitely the A30 has proven to be an excellent local school bus, with 57 seats, good air conditioning, seat belts and good fuel economy – it’s easy to drive and very popular with the drivers. They love driving them.”
Scania has also received a thumbs up from former Panorama Coaches driver and now workshop manager Peter Cuthbert.
“The A30s have plenty of power. They started with 310hp but now are 320hp and, with the recent upgrade of the drivers area, the dash console in particular has made them much more appealing to drive,” he says.
“The A30s are great for the jobs we do. You know, we can do a hockey job or a tennis job with sports bags and the like. But when you do a job where there’s more luggage, you need a bigger underfloor storage area, like that of the Touring.”
The Dineen Group was first offered the Scania Touring product back in 2019, with the operator quickly realising the larger bins suited its needs to a tee.
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“It was a more modern design, too. The Scania and the Higer marriage sounded pretty good to us,” Griffiths says.
“We bought five Tourings in 2019, having bought one A30 from another Dineen Group member, Berwick Bus Lines, in 2016 as a toe-in-the-water, and then we’ve bought nothing else but that since 2019. We also have got five Scania chassis under the Irizar i6 body, and had a few older Scanias on North Coast chassis, dating back to 2004 that have since been sold.”
The Scania concept of offering the market a Scania from bumper-to-bumper was met with quick approval at Panorama Coaches.
“From a maintenance point of view, that’s hugely appealing, and having a dealership just 35 minutes away that handles both chassis and body, with parts, maintenance and warranty all in the one place is a huge selling point for us,” Cuthbert says.
“Some other brands have chassis parts on one side of town and body parts on the other side of town, so we lose half a day for chassis and half a day for body when we need parts or repairs. Having the body and chassis supplier in one place and nearby is a huge advantage in terms of reduced downtime.
“Plus, we have a really good relationship with the aftersales team at Scania. They never turn us away, not Pat the manager, nor Joe in the workshop. Joe especially will take time out to listen to what our concern is. They make an effort. Greg in spare parts is fantastic. They go out of their way to support us.”
Panorama Coaches completes its own regular maintenance in-house, with the warranty work and bigger jobs going to Scania. Panorama’s own in-house panel beater and spray painter ensures the renowned factory colours are continuing to grace the streets of Diamond Creek and its surrounding communities.
“Another great Scania service is Scania Assist, although I haven’t had to use it too many times, but it is good to know it is there,” Cuthbert says.
“We had an airbag leveling rod that had broken off down in Trafalgar, and Scania Assist got out there quickly. Scania Assist is another positive Scania attribute along with the body and chassis being out of the one premises, along with parts sales and service.
“It’s a one-stop-shop. It makes life so much easier when you can make one phone call and everything comes under that umbrella.”
Cuthbert worked at Panorama Coaches as a driver when it first received the Tourings. He was lucky enough to get to drive one at the time, beating out a field of drivers wanting to get the new models.
Whether it be travelling to camps at Rumbug or Waratah Bay or winding up to the snow-filled mountains of Buller and Hotham, Scania and its Opticruise transmission is proving critical to the next phase of Panorama Coaches and the wider Dineen Group.
“The first three that we got were the Opticruise transmission, which again were just fantastic to drive, especially to the camps,” Cuthbert says.
“We don’t do a lot of snow work, but for going up and down Buller and Hotham, the Opticruise just stands out. The option to drive them manually – the guys love that – particularly on the snow, because you feel like you’re in control, you can use engine braking. The retarder in the Opticruise appears to be a lot more powerful than a fully automatic transmission.
“You can come down Hotham almost without touching the brake. With the retarder it is just effortless.”
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