King Alfred goes Swedish
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• The first Metro-Scania buses to enter service with a British independent operator are now running in Winchester. the only city where a large proportion of the local bus services are provided by an independent. Trading under the name of King Alfred Motor Services, the 49-vehicle fleet of R. Chisnell and Sons Ltd includes 34 buses, six coaches and nine minibuses.
For many years the company's policy was to run crew-operated double-deckers on the town services because such vehicles occupied less road space and could handle passenger traffic more quickly. Staff shortage and the availability of larger capacity single-deckers led to a change in this policy, however, and a growing fleet of o-m-o single-deckers now includes three 47-seat Metro-Scanias which, with space for 24 standees, each accommodate a total of 71 passengers.
The buses employ the standard specification, including a Scania 11-litre 200 bhp engine mounted transversely at the rear. fully automatic transmission, power steering and air suspension. They have been described by Mr Bob Chisnell, joint managing director, as ideal in service, and are returning an average fuel consumption of about 9.5 mpg.