Newbury & District has taken delivery of four Volvo B8Rs with Plaxton Panther bodywork from Alexander Dennis (ADL) for its services to Heathrow Airport.
The PSVAR-compliant vehicles will serve the Reading Buses subsidiary’s Flightline 730 and 731 routes which began operation between Basingstoke and the airport’s Terminal 5 last summer.
They replace double-decker buses on the limited-stop service, which also takes in Frimley, Camberley, and Bagshot.
The Plaxtons come with wood-effect flooring and free wi-fi and USB charging at all 53 passenger seats, while ADL promotes them as having “comfortable seating and ample legroom”.
Reading Buses Chief Executive Robert Williams says: “Our Newbury & District Flightline 730 and 731 route fills several gaps in the public transport network between key towns on the A30 corridor in north-east Hampshire and north-west Surrey. Alexander Dennis had Plaxton Panther coaches available within the timeframe we needed, which are well suited to the motorway sections of the route and offer plenty of room for luggage.”
ADL Regional Sales Manager Mark Taylor adds: “The Plaxton Panther is a great vehicle for services like these, offering a flexible platform to combine capacity and accessibility with comfort and reliability. Together with Volvo, who have provided the Panthers’ dependable B8R chassis, we appreciate the opportunity to supply coaches to Newbury & District and look forward to supporting their operation.”
The delivery follows introduction last year of seven new ADL Enviro400 double-deckers for Reading Buses’ 702 between Windsor and London and 703 between Bracknell and Heathrow Airport.
The Flightline 730 and 731 services were introduced ahead of the expansion of  London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone last August and ran with an introductory £1 single fare offer.
