New fleet hits the road
Things are really moving for older people and adults with learning disabilities thanks to a brand new mode of transport.
Warwickshire County Council has invested in 24 new wheelchair accessible Optare Solo buses which have been specially made to give more transport freedom to people predominantly receiving day care and respite services across the county.
David Curle, Assets Manager for Adult, Health and Community Services, said: “We have almost completed our replacement of old style vehicles and we are delighted to be giving customers a smoother and quicker service with the new fleet.
"We are constantly looking at ways to improve, and the new buses, which we have designed in conjunction with our colleagues at Optare, have made our operations much more efficient and greener since they entered service.”
The new vehicles are built specifically for purpose and are wheelchair accessible from kerb level rather than using a wheelchair lift at the rear. As a result, journey times are much quicker as it takes just 90 seconds, rather than five and a half minutes, to get a wheelchair on board and many passengers can board independently.
The new fleet is more environmentally friendly with much lower exhaust emissions than the older models and the new vehicles are more efficient as they are able to transport increased passenger loadings throughout the day.
Warwickshire County Council’s Adult, Health and Community Services have 42 wheelchair accessible vehicles based at five locations across the county.
Passengers are delighted with the new vehicles and driver Bill Green said: “Our customers are enjoying the more comfortable ride on the new buses. They are able to get on and off with ease and the vehicles are much more user friendly.”
The wheelchair accessible fleet, along with a small fleet of 4 x 4 vehicles provide various uses to the county’s Emergency Planning Team. Should the need arise, the seats can be removed from the vehicle in minutes, transforming it into a warm refuge at the scene of a crisis. In fact a small number of vehicles were used during the recent heavy snow to transport staff to and from residential homes in outlying areas where road conditions were extremely difficult.