Mercedes-Benz Citaro lands in the Isle of Man

9 August 2011

The Mercedes-Benz Citaro has reached new territory with the arrival of the first of twelve new vehicles for Bus Vannin, the government owned local bus operation for the Isle of Man. The vehicles introduce a new silver livery for the operator and are intended to replace double deckers on some of the island’s key routes.

Welcoming the first Citaro off the ferry, Hon David Cretney MHK, the Isle of Man Government Minister for Community, Culture and Leisure, commented: "These single decker buses have a total capacity of 70 passengers, compared with a capacity of up to 78 on the double decker buses they are replacing. So, the new Mercedes-Benz Citaros will be able to carry a similar number of passengers with the advantage of being able to operate much more economically due to their size."

Ventura Systems designed the new emergency door for the Mercedes-Benz Citaro. It is designed to fit in the side of the bus without apparant optical changes.

The finish on each bus is the classic Mercedes-Benz silver. This saves the cost of customised painting and also results in much cheaper spares and less time and expense required for panel repairs, ensuring more time on the road.

Mr Cretney added: "Not only did Mercedes-Benz offer the best value for money per bus, but they offer the best whole life costs. The build quality you can expect from an experienced Mercedes-Benz factory is accompanied by further savings on servicing, spares and repairs, reducing costs while also offering passengers a very high level of comfort."

Bus Vannin's Mercedes-Benz Citaros are being supplied by Mercedes-Benz Bus Sales at EvoBus UK and the full batch of twelve will be officially handed over shortly.