22 Feb 2017, 7:39 pm
#282
(22 Feb 2017, 2:54 pm)a718abb Dan, something I've always wondered. Do companies pay to have these vehicles on demonstration or are they provided free. The reason I ask is that if Optare have extended the demonstration for free, then they must be confident that GNE will place an order.
Bus builders will provide demonstration buses for free.
They do it so operators can get a feel for what it would be like to run the bus as if it was one of their own.
With the lack of sales of MetroDeckers so far, I would assume Optare are anticipating that by extending the trial, they are more likely to secure an order (as they would hope Go North East would be able to find a suitable service for that vehicle type during this time!)
Whether or not Go North East has found a suitable service or not for this vehicle type, and how it stacks up against competing double decks (StreetDeck, Volvo B5TL, Enviro400 City, etc) is another matter.
