Golden Bus Page
Descriptions and Other Photos
[ Dennis Trident | MAN 24.310 | Scania K310UD | TransBus / Alexander Dennis Enviro500 ]
[ NEOPLAN Centroliner | Volvo B9TL | Volvo Super Olympian | Back ]
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Following the first Dennis Trident ATR1, more and more buses of the same kind joined the fleet and entered services.
There are two body manufacturers providing body kits to Kowloon Motor Bus (KMB) for local assembly. The two body manufacturers are, Alexander (ALX500) and Duple Metsec (DM5000). KMB assigned "ATR" as fleet number prefix for the 12-metre version, while the 10.6-metre version was assigned with "ATS". Up to twenty 12-metre Alexander bodied Tridents were transferred from Long Win Bus (LWB), they were then re-painted in gold. Two EURO III Tridents, with 10.6-metre Alexander bodies, were painted in green and are promoted as the "KMB Green Buses". |
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Thirty MAN 24.310 buses of KMB are bodied by Berkhof. All of them are maintained by Tuen Mun Depot, and are normally allocated on Tuen Mun routes. These buses were originally ordered by Citybus, and went to KMB after Citybus had cancelled the order.
KMB assigned "AMN" as the fleet number prefix to the MAN 24.310s. Another 17 buses of the same model, having Volgren bodies, started their services in July 2002. Two of them, AMN34 and 35, were orginally ordered by Citybus too. |
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NEOPLAN Centroliners of KMB entered service on 1 August 1999. KMB had placed an initial order of 20, and 2 additonal orders of 60 and 50 respectively.
KMB further purchased more Centroliners with MAN EURO III engines. The first 2 buses were painted in green and are promoted as the "KMB Green Buses". An addition order of 30 EURO III Centroliners joined the fleet in 2002. KMB assigned "AP" as the fleet number prefix to these buses. In October 2003, a NEOPLAN Centroliner with wide-bodied, straight staircase and plug door started passenger service. Unlike the previous version, the bus was built on a MAN chassis. The fleet number assigned to this bus is APM1. |
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The Scania K310UD is the double-deck citybus variant with a 9-litre 5-cylinder 310 hp engine.
KMB received two Scania K310UD buses with ZF 6HP602 gearboxes. The bus body was designed and built by Salvador Caetano (Waterlooville). The first bus has been registered as MT 6551 in March 2007 and entered service in August 2007, while the second one has been registered as NE 6817 and entered service in February 2008. The buses are allocated a fleet number prefix of "ASU". |
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Enviro500 is one of a new series of models produced by TransBus International. The new models are to replace the old products manufactured by various group companies - Dennis, Alexander and Plaxton.
Enviro500 is an intgrated product without seperated names for chassis and body. However, the buses are built in different plants. Chassis, which are modified from Tridents, are built in Dennis, while body kits are built in Alexander. The introduction of Enviro500 also brings new features of buses to Hong Kong. For examples, the 2.55-metre body width and the straight staircase. KMB is the launch customer of Enviro500 and has also participated in the design process of the model. An initial order of 120 buses was placed. The historic name of Dennis returned in May 2004 after TransBus has been bought up by a Scottish consortium. The Company is now called "Alexander Dennis". The fleet number prefix assigned to these buses is "ATE". |
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Volvo supplied a Volvo B9TL demonstrator to KMB in 2003 which was utilized to evaluate the "Eco-Driveline" system for a number of months after arrived in Hong Kong. B9TL is a new model which is to replace "Super Olympian". The most distinct difference between the two models is the relocated radiator to the rear. Besides, B9TL was powered by a Volvo D9C engine.
The demonstrator (VIN: YV3S4J1112A000002) was bodied by Volgren with a standard width. The bus was registered on 19 March 2004 as LJ 7006 with a fleet number of AVD1 and started passenger service on 27 April 2004. More B9TL buses have joined the fleet since 2005, their bodies are supplied by Wright and Alexander Dennis. |
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KMB introduced 61 Volvo Super Olympians in late-1999. The buses are 12 meters long, and fitted with modified Alexander ALX500 bodies.
KMB allocated "3ASV" as the fleet number prefix for Super Olympian. The first Super Olympian arrived in Hong Kong is 3ASV3 (JE 1672). However, the bus was the third one which received a registration, therefore 3ASV3 is numerically the third. In addition, KMB ordered 49 10.6-metre Super Olympians. Those were designated as "ASV" by KMB, and started their service in February 2001. Two body manufacturers supply bodies for the Super Olympians. They are Alexander and Volgren. 3ASV403 is the first registered Volgren bodied Super Olympian in the fleet. One of the EURO III Super Olympians, 3ASV297, was painted in green and is promoted as the "KMB Green Bus". The bus subsequently started the passenger service on 5 January 2002. One hundred extended width, straight staircase and plug exit door bodies are provided by Wright. The name of the body is "Explorer". KMB allocated "AVW" as the fleet number prefix for these buses. |
[ Dennis Trident | MAN 24.310 | Scania K310UD | TransBus / Alexander Dennis Enviro500 ]
[ NEOPLAN Centroliner | Volvo Super Olympian | Back ]
Number of Visitors
Counted since 20 June, 1996.
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