Family owned and operated, McDermott’s Coaches have introduced four Volvo hybrid buses to transport passengers between the Cradle Mountain Visitor Centre and Dove Lake. The world heritage listed site is one of Tasmania’s most iconic attractions appealing to more than 2000,000 people per year.
Being one of the most frequently visited natural attractions in Australia with endless wildlife, hiking trails and rich habitat in the area, McDermott Coaches joint venture with Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service, are committed to minimising their environmental footprint given the region's history as a World Heritage-listed national park.
Taking a step forward in creating a cleaner environmentally friendly solution, McDermott’s launched four new Volvo B5L Hybrid Buses to their fleet. Powered by a Volvo D5K Euro 6 engine, the Volvo B5L Hybrid is a modern powertrain, combined with the parallel hybrid electric motor. The diesel engine produces 240hp with the electric motor boosting to an additional 110kW of performance, designed to embark various gradients within the Cradle Mountain National Park. The Volvo B5L Hybrid leads the way in environmental performance with a 30–40% reduction in CO2 and a 50% drop in hazardous emissions. Not only does Volvo hybrid buses offer environmentally friendly performance, but both the driver and tourist passengers will also enjoy the quiet comfort as the bus is propelled entirely electrically from start and up to 15-20 km/h. As a result, one hybrid bus can improve carbon dioxide footprint by 27 tonnes in a year.
Simon McDermott, Managing Director, McDermott’s Coaches stated at the Volvo Hybrid launch “bringing the hybrids to Tasmania was a proud moment for our family-owned and operated business. We needed a reliable vehicle with low emissions, quiet and had the ability to work in a harsh environment. The Volvo hybrid bus could do just that, and was the best fit in our eyes.”
CMV Truck and Bus were honoured to be part of this journey, in offering fuel-efficient and reliable hybrid solutions to Tasmania. The Bus bodies for the Hybrid B5L were built by Bustech in Queensland and transported to CMV Truck & Bus Derrimut for pre-delivery preparation before being transported across to Tasmania. Volvo Bus Branch Manager, at CMV Truck Bus, Darren Cottle states that “Volvo hybrid technology takes green efficiency to the next level with low noise, low fuel consumption, low emissions. The Volvo B5L presents a jump-start for improved public transport; capacity and environmental care not to mention the ability to offer impressive fuel-savings from day one.”