The Plaxton President was a
low floor
Accessibility is the design of products, devices, services, vehicles, or environments so as to be usable by people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design and practice of accessible development ensures both "direct access" (i. ...
double-decker bus
A double-decker bus or double-deck bus is a bus that has two storeys or decks. They are used for mass transport in the United Kingdom, the United States, New Zealand, Europe, Asia and also in cities such as Sydney; the best-known example is the ...
body built at
Northern Counties plant in
Wigan, England and branded as a
Plaxton
Plaxton is an English builder of bus and coach vehicle bodies based in Scarborough. Founded in 1907 by Frederick William Plaxton, it became a subsidiary of Alexander Dennis in May 2007. In 2019, the maker was acquired by Canadian bus manu ...
product for its main production run. It was first unveiled in 1997 on the longitudinal
Volvo B7L
The Volvo B7L is a fully low floor single-decker bus, double-decker bus and articulated bus chassis with a rear engine mounted vertically on the left of the rear overhang. It was built as a replacement for the Volvo B10L, and the Volvo Olympi ...
chassis and later built between 1998 and 2005 following a body redesign.
When it became part of
TransBus International
Alexander Dennis is a British bus manufacturing company based in Larbert, Scotland. The largest bus and coach manufacturer in the United Kingdom with a 50% market share in 2019, it has manufacturing plants and partnerships in Canada, China, E ...
, the body was sold under the TransBus name. The President was built on the
Dennis/TransBus Trident, the
DAF DB250 and the
Volvo B7TL chassis.
Features
The body was designed to compete with the
Alexander ALX400
The Alexander ALX400 (later known as the TransBus ALX400 and the Alexander Dennis ALX400) was a 2-axle double-decker bus body built by Walter Alexander Coachbuilders (later by TransBus International/Alexander Dennis). It was one of the ALX-seri ...
body, and had rectangular front headlights below a large front windscreen. From the side, it can be easily recognised by the different depths of windows on the lower deck; however, this is less apparent with newer bonded-glazed models. Seating varied according to the chassis and specification.
TfL models were typically built with 41 seats upstairs, and 23 downstairs, with a centre exit door. Early TfL versions also had the staircase moved to the centre of the bus, although this was later changed to the standard position of just behind the driver.
Operators
London
The Plaxton President on various chassis combinations proved very popular with some of
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
's bus operators. The first production examples of the body were first delivered to
Arriva London
Arriva London is a major bus company operating services in Greater London. It is a subsidiary of Arriva UK Bus and operates services under contract to Transport for London. It was formed in 1998 from a fusion of previously separate Arriva s ...
on the
DAF DB250 chassis in 1999.
Arriva London would go on to purchase 91 Plaxton Presidents on the DAF chassis until 2005, acquiring a further ten from
Capital Logistics
Capital Logistics was a bus and coach operator in London.
History
Capital Logistics was formed in August 1997 following the merger of Whyte's Airport Services and Capital Coaches the previous April.
It operated a variety of coach and contract ...
.
Metroline
Metroline is a bus company operating services in Greater London and south Hertfordshire. It is a subsidiary of ComfortDelGro Corporation and operates services under contract to Transport for London. As at March 2021, the fleet consisted of 1,5 ...
operated the most Plaxton Presidents in London, ordering 305 examples on the
Volvo B7TL chassis and 260 on the
Dennis Trident 2
The Dennis Trident 2 is a 2-axle low-floor double-decker bus chassis originally manufactured by Dennis, which was unveiled in 1997 and replaced the Dennis Arrow. It was built by TransBus after Dennis was incorporated into the group in 2001, t ...
chassis from 1999 to 2005.
London General
London General is a bus company operating in Greater London. It is a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group and operates services under contract to Transport for London. The company is named after the London General Omnibus Company, the principal ...
and
London Central
London Central is a bus company operating in South London. It is a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group and operates services under contract to Transport for London.
History
London Central commenced operating on 1 April 1989 when London Bus ...
, both part of the
Go-Ahead Group
The Go-Ahead Group plc is a passenger transport company based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, with operations in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Singapore, Norway and Germany. Formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange, in 2022 it was purchased ...
, also amassed large quantities of Plaxton Presidents, purchasing a total of 419 on the Volvo B7TL chassis as well as an additional 50 Dennis Tridents.
Other major London operators include
First London
First London was a bus company operating services in east and west Greater London, England. It was a subsidiary of FirstGroup and operated buses under contract to Transport for London. It was formed in the late 1990s through the acquisition o ...
,
London United and
Blue Triangle.
Outside London
Lothian Buses
Lothian Buses is a major bus operator based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is the largest municipal bus company in the United Kingdom: the City of Edinburgh Council (through Transport for Edinburgh) owns 91%, Midlothian Council 5%, East Lothi ...
were the largest operator of Presidents outside London, purchasing approximately 205 from 1999 to 2004. All but seven examples were built on the Dennis Tridents chassis; the remaining seven Presidents were purchased on the Volvo B7TL chassis.
Some of these would later receive open top conversion for Lothian's sightseeing subsidiaries.
National Express West Midlands
National Express West Midlands (NXWM) is a bus operator in the West Midlands that operates services in Birmingham, Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall, Wolverhampton, and Solihull, as well as limited routes outside of the general area of Birmingham, s ...
, formerly Travel West Midlands, were the second largest operator of Presidents outside London with 102 examples new between 1999 and 2000, all of which were built on the Volvo B7TL chassis. These underwent refurbishment in 2007–2008. Recent deliveries to National Express West Midlands have seen some of these Presidents move mainly to the associated
Xplore Dundee
Xplore Dundee is a bus operator based in Dundee, Scotland, operating services mainly within Dundee City. The operator also runs a service to Edinburgh Airport. It is a subsidiary of McGill’s Buses, which is based in Greenock, Scotland.
Histo ...
fleet or sold on to other bus operators.
Go-Ahead Group
The Go-Ahead Group plc is a passenger transport company based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, with operations in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Singapore, Norway and Germany. Formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange, in 2022 it was purchased ...
companies outside
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
also bought Presidents in substantial numbers.
Brighton & Hove took 36 Presidents on the
Dennis Trident 2
The Dennis Trident 2 is a 2-axle low-floor double-decker bus chassis originally manufactured by Dennis, which was unveiled in 1997 and replaced the Dennis Arrow. It was built by TransBus after Dennis was incorporated into the group in 2001, t ...
chassis between 2001 and 2002. This was followed by
Go North East who took 15 in 2001 on the Dennis Trident chassis.
Southern Vectis purchased 7 Presidents on
Volvo B7TL chassis in 2002, prior before to the company being taken over by Go-Ahead.
The
Stagecoach Group ordered nearly 50 low-height Presidents on
Dennis Trident 2
The Dennis Trident 2 is a 2-axle low-floor double-decker bus chassis originally manufactured by Dennis, which was unveiled in 1997 and replaced the Dennis Arrow. It was built by TransBus after Dennis was incorporated into the group in 2001, t ...
chassis between 2000 and 2003.
Stagecoach Cambus took the first seven Presidents in 2000, with the company later ordering a majority of their Presidents in 2003. 30 of these were delivered to
, while six were delivered to
Stagecoach Oxfordshire
Stagecoach in Oxfordshire is the trading name of Thames Transit Ltd. It is a bus operator serving the county of Oxfordshire, England. Since 1997 has been a subsidiary of Stagecoach Group, and since February 2021 it has been part of Stagecoach ...
in 'Brookes Bus' livery. Stagecoach opted in 2003 for Plaxton to body these Dennis Tridents in order to support their Wigan factory, which was suffering from a lack of orders.
East Yorkshire Motor Services
East Yorkshire operates both local and regional bus services in the East Riding of Yorkshire and North Yorkshire, England. Prior to acquisition by the Go-Ahead Group in June 2018, the company was known as East Yorkshire Motor Services.
History ...
were another large operator of Presidents, ordering 36 lowheight examples on Volvo B7TL chassis ordered from 2000 to 2003. 30 were delivered to the main East Yorkshire fleet while six were ordered for their
Finglands subsidiary in Manchester, with two Presidents for each company being delivered for evaluation in 2000 before orders commenced. East Yorkshire later purchased 27 mid-life Presidents from
Go-Ahead London
Go-Ahead London is the trading name used collectively for the London bus operations of the Go-Ahead Group. The name first appeared in August 2008, before which the company had traded under separate names and brands. It is currently (as of 2021 ...
in 2012, some of which was converted for open top operation and driver training.
Smaller orders include
Arriva
Arriva plc is a British multinational public transport company headquartered in Sunderland, England.[Arriva Yorkshire
Arriva Yorkshire is a major bus operator providing services primarily within and across West Yorkshire, although it also provides service in some parts of South Yorkshire, East Riding of Yorkshire and southern areas of North Yorkshire. It is a ...]
subsidiary, the
Blazefield Group who took 19, 16 for
Burnley & Pendle and three for
Yorkshire Coastliner
Transdev York & Country (also known as Yorkshire Coastliner) operates both local and regional bus services in North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire, England. It is a subsidiary of Transdev Blazefield, which operates bus services across Greater Man ...
, as well as independent based operators such as
Pete's Travel,
Mayne Coaches,
Blue Bus & Coach Services,
Hedingham Omnibuses,
North Birmingham Busways and Liverpool Motor Services.
Replacement
The Mayflower Group, the parent company of TransBus International, went into administration in March 2004. It was bought out in May 2004 by a consortium including
Brian Souter
Sir Brian Souter (born 5 May 1954) is a Scottish businessman. With his sister, Ann Gloag, he founded the Stagecoach Group of bus and rail operators. He also founded the bus and coach operator Megabus, the train operating company South West Train ...
, the owner of the Stagecoach Group and was renamed
Alexander Dennis
Alexander Dennis is a British bus manufacturing company based in Larbert, Scotland. The largest bus and coach manufacturer in the United Kingdom with a 50% market share in 2019, it has manufacturing plants and partnerships in Canada, China, E ...
. A programme of restructuring began within Alexander Dennis which, at the time, saw the Plaxton coach division divested and the TransBus product range rationalised. In turn a decision was taken to close the former Northern Counties plant in Wigan
[ ] and phase out the President in favour of the
Falkirk-built ALX400. The final Presidents were built at the Wigan plant in January 2005 and both it and the ALX400 would be phased out in favour of the semi-integral
Alexander Dennis Enviro400 which took over from end of 2005. The Enviro400 has elements of the ALX400 and President in its design.
See also
*
List of buses
Year refers to the first year introduced. A range of years is the period the bus was manufactured.
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E
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H
I
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...
References
External links
{{Plaxton
President
President
Double-decker buses
Low-floor buses
Open-top buses
Vehicles introduced in 1998