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Plaxton Verde

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Plaxton Verde
Arriva North West and Wales Plaxton Verde bodied Dennis Lance in Bootle in April 2009
Overview
ManufacturerPlaxton
Production1991–1997
AssemblyScarborough, North Yorkshire, England
Body and chassis
Doors1 or 2
Floor typeStep entrance
ChassisDennis Lance
Volvo B10B
DAF SB220
Scania N113
Powertrain
EngineCummins C series (Dennis Lance)
Scania DSC11 (Scania N113)
DAF LT160 (DAF SB220)
Volvo THD103 KB (Volvo B10B)
Capacity35 to 50 seated
Dimensions
Length10.1–12.5 metres (33–41 ft)
Width2.5 metres (8 ft 2 in)
Height3.0 metres (9.8 ft)

The Plaxton Verde was a step-entrance full-size single-decker bus body built by Plaxton between 1991 and 1997. It was built on a rear-engined chassis, the most popular of which was the Dennis Lance which accounted for over half of the Verdes built. The rest were on Volvo B10B, DAF SB220 and Scania N113 chassis.

Design

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Stagecoach North East Plaxton Verde bodied Volvo B10B at Teesside Running Day in April 2012

Launched in March 1991 as part of Plaxton's move away from traditional coach body manufacturing, with ambitions to export the model to Continental Europe, the Plaxton Verde has an aluminium structure and flat-sided, boxy shape, similar to that of the manufacturer's Pointer midibus. The front end of the bus, however, differs from the Pointer by having a distinctive "barrel-curvature" windscreen plus four headlights instead of the Pointer's two.[1]

On early vehicles (primarily the Scania N113s and DAF SB220s), the side windows have rounded corners and the quarterlights extend below the windscreen. Later-built vehicles have square-cornered windows, an enlarged cab side window with an angled corner like that on the Pointer, and the lower edge of the quarterlights level with that of the windscreen and of the cab window. Minor alterations were also made to the front dash panel. Verdes were identified by the letter L in Plaxton's post-1989 body numbering system.

Operators

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Oxford Bus Company Plaxton Verde bodied Volvo B10B in Radley in November 2006

Sales of the Verde body initially proved very slow, with only two demonstrators produced by Plaxton during 1991.[2] A year after the Verde was launched, Cardiff Bus became the first bus operator in the United Kingdom to take delivery of the type, ordering 14 on Scania N113CRB chassis that were delivered in February 1992.[3] These were followed in October 1993 by the delivery of ten Verdes on Dennis Lance chassis to South Wales Transport.[4]

The first large operator to order Verdes was Dublin Bus, who took delivery of forty dual-door Plaxton Verdes on DAF SB220 chassis in 1992, entering service as the P class to introduce a new high-frequency brand known as 'CitySwift'. These Verdes received a number of modifications, mainly centred around the cab layout and overall strength, in order to be certified to Irish and European Economic Community standards.[5] Throughout their service life, however, Dublin Bus' Verdes were plagued with structural problems and would return to Plaxton's Scarborough factory more than once for remedial treatment.

The largest overall operator of Plaxton Verdes was the Badgerline Group, taking large numbers of the type on Dennis Lance chassis between 1993 and 1996 for its Midland Red West and Yorkshire Rider subsidiaries.[6] Yorkshire Rider took delivery of a total 78 Verdes between 1995 and 1996, a majority of which were delivered to Huddersfield for 'Flagship' services,[7][8] with a further 30 delivered under FirstBus for the rebranded Leeds City Link operation.[9]

The Oxford Bus Company took delivery of 43 Verdes on Volvo B10B chassis, the first four of which were diverted from an order for eight for fellow Go-Ahead Group subsidiary Go-Ahead Gateshead,[10][11][8] while London Buses subsidiary Selkent's Catford garage took delivery of twelve dual-door Verdes on Dennis Lance chassis in 1994 for use on London Buses route 208.[12][better source needed] Other operators of Plaxton Verdes included Cleveland Transit on the Volvo B10B chassis, as well as Busways Travel Services, Clydeside 2000, North Western, Nottingham City Transport and Potteries Motor Traction on the Dennis Lance chassis.[citation needed]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Plaxton launches Verde". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 21 March 1991. p. 14. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  2. ^ "Big bus plans from Matthews". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 3 September 1992. p. 14. Retrieved 26 April 2024. Under Matthews's chairmanship, Plaxton tried to reduce its dependence on the UK luxury coach market and launched the Verde city bus body last March. But the Verde has sold exceptionally slowly.
  3. ^ "Cardiff Verdes". Coach & Bus Week. No. 2. Peterborough: Emap. 29 February 1992. p. 16.
  4. ^ Isaacs, Jonathan (21 October 1993). "£1m buses to take on BR". South Wales Evening Post. Swansea. p. 1. Retrieved 26 April 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Morgan, Mike (19 December 1992). "Dublin Verdes point the way". Coach & Bus Week. No. 44. Peterborough: Emap. p. 10. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  6. ^ "Plaxton for Badgerline". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 20 August 1992. p. 16. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  7. ^ "Rider launch flagship". Bus & Coach Buyer. No. 294. Spalding. 17 February 1995. p. 17. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  8. ^ a b "First orders". Coach & Bus Week. No. 157. Peterborough: Emap. 4 March 1995. p. 12. Retrieved 26 April 2024. Yorkshire Rider has become Britain's biggest Plaxton Verde user, with the delivery of 48 on Dennis Lance chassis. And the Gateshead-based Go-Ahead Group has joined the growing list of Verde customers, with an order for 30 on the Volvo Bus Chassis.
  9. ^ "New buses and a facelift for Leeds City Link". Bus & Coach Buyer. No. 348. Spalding: Glen-Holland Ltd. 8 March 1996. p. 20. The order includes the delivery of 30 Dennis Lance single-deck buses with Plaxton Verde bodywork and 30 9.8 metre Dennis Darts with Plaxton Pointer bodies.
  10. ^ Lyons, Mark (30 June 2022). "Oxford Bus Company". The Go-Ahead Group: The First 25 Years. Stamford: Key Publishing. p. 44. ISBN 978-1-80282-082-9. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  11. ^ Lyons, Mark (30 June 2022). "Go-Ahead Northern becomes Go-Ahead Group". The Go-Ahead Group: The First 25 Years. Stamford: Key Publishing. p. 19. ISBN 978-1-80282-082-9. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  12. ^ Smith, Ian (5 April 2000). "LV". Archived from the original on 13 April 2008. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
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