50 new single-operator buses for JUTC fleet

Published: Wednesday | December 31, 2008



Female driver Hainif Farquharson inspects one of the new Jamaica Urban Transit Company buses at Kingston Wharves yesterday. The bus company has added some 50 single-operator buses to its fleet. - Ricardo Makyn/Staff Photographer

The Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) yesterday added 50 brand-new single-operator Volvo buses to its fleet.

The state-of-the-art yellow buses, which boast an emblem of the national flag on the front, were supplied by the Belgian firm VDL Jonckheere Bus & Coach and will be deployed mainly in the Kingston Metropolitan Transport Region.

An additional shipment of 50 buses is expected in April next year, which will take the fleet up to 420.

12-litre engines

Jason Brown, vice-president of engineering at the JUTC, said the buses were all equipped with powerful 12-litre engines.

"These engines can run up to a million kilo miles before they actually need any major overhaul to be done, so they are very reliable," he said.

The 53-seater buses also come equipped with cameras that are able to record up to 48 hours of footage. This information, Brown said, will be downloaded and stored at the JUTC's corporate office.

Brown also said the buses were fully computerised and fitted with four-wheel discs and anti-lock braking systems.

"To work on these buses, you must have the training and you must have specialised equipment," he said.

Drivers have been specially trained to operate the buses.