Deluxe Coachlines was an Australian interstate coach operator that operated from 1979 until 1990.

History

Deluxe Coachlines was founded in May 1979 by Sydney based travel agent Len Roden. With a Denning coach hired from

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, Roden began operating a weekly service from Sydney to

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via

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and

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.Flashback Friday: Rise and fall of a transport icon
''

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'' 23 September 2016 By October 1979, the service had expanded to twice weekly with a

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bodied RFW and two

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coaches added. Deluxe established its own maintenance facility in Wangaratta in 1981. It expanded into all other mainland states and territories and became a national operator with the introduction of an

to Alice Springs service in 1985. It gradually expanded and by 1988 was Australia's largest coach operator with a 50% market share operating across the country with nearly 200 coaches. A drop off in demand after

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as well as the arrival of deregulated discount airlines, brought about the demise of the company. Deluxe was placed in

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal ** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...

in August 1990 by the ANZ Bank with

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appointed as administrator. Operations briefly resumed between

, Darwin and

in November 1990 before Deluxe ceased for good.

Fleet

Deluxe built up a large fleet of

and Austral Tourmaster coaches. It later purchased coaches from Denning, MotorCoach Australia and

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. Deluxe adopted a white with two shades of blue livery that was a familiar sight on Australia's road for many years after its demise courtesy of the number of operators who elected not to repaint former Deluxe coaches they purchased. It also used sub-contractors, with Western Road Liners having seven vehicles painted in Deluxe livery.

Legacy

The Deluxe Coachlines name was revived in the 2000s by a Melbourne coach operator.First Impressions Last - Deluxe Coachlines
''Australasian Bus & Coach'' 29 December 2018

References

{{Australian interstate coach operators, state=collapsed Bus companies of Australia Transport companies established in 1979 Transport companies disestablished in 1990 Wangaratta 1979 establishments in Australia 1990 disestablishments in Australia