[Jimmyjosek]

Dear Friends;

Scania SVLL Connect, to be operated by Siddhi Vinayak Logistics was showcased during inauguration of Scania plant at Narsapura.

This is indeed the most luxurious bus in India. The bus has been designed by DC. It has first class seats, leather upholstry, individual TV sets witj live TV / computer, Toilet, Pantry, Wifi, GPRS etc

The pics speak for themselves

Jimmy Jose

[Jimmyjosek]

Here are the pictures of the interior of the bus. Unmatched quality

[masin4]

Isn't this a rehash of Olivea that was plying from Bangalore sometime back .Hope the interior build quality has improved, else it rattles so much that it is impossible to travel

[lemedico]

Come on DC, please stay away from the automobile industry and start working with products a normal person doesn't really care about. I have never seen any car that they have designed("uglyfied") which I would like to own or even have a wallpaper image of on my desktop.

Anything out of their company is perfectly described by just this single word, GAUDY.
It's always either bright orange or red and geometric shapes cut-pasted onto what used to be a good original design.

Psychologically speaking, the colour scheme in the pantry of the bus and on the seats are more suited for a drunken group of youths partying away the hours of midnight. Just look at how UN-SOOTHING it is! Travel is a stress on the body...why mess the mind up even more. DC, did you apply those colours after looking at pics on a nightclub's facebook page?

[nareshov]

Does this have an emergency exit?

[speedsatya]

GC looks too low ... More like a city bus ! Will be very interesting on bad roads and speedbreakers !

With all these equipment on board , this is going to be one very heavy bus ! Hope this operator hasn't got many buses in this configuration.

Ask me , instead of all these fancy stuff on board , just gimme 2+1 business class seats with ample legroom , I am more than willing to pay more.

[TheARUN]

I am giving this one the thumbs up

The seats are impeccably designed, gives each passenger their own space, there is no more reclining front passenger sleeping in your lap! Even the small things are well thought off, the headphones - they are ear covering, and that is better when you are going to have multiple users, and they are wired to the bus so that passengers cannot carry them away as souvenirs. The luggage racks, for the single seats they are on top, but for the dual seats, they are in front! Again, awesome thought. The venetian blinds is another superb addition, makes away with flapping curtains

Hope this Bus works in the real world, looks good on paper

My concerns if I was SVLL -
Why do we need a pantry, how is the whole logistics of a pantry on board and meals of board going to work, its going to be too much to handle and that seat for the attendant, its going to be torture on long trips
How will the toilet get cleaned? Its easy to clean on the outside, you can hose the whole toilet down, but how does the stuff that goes in get disposed? And what about foul air from the toilet coming into the air-tight bus cabin?

I think India is not ready for this bus as yet, but then someone had to start sometime, thanks to SVLL for jumping into the fray first :-)

[julupani]

Like I said, before I dont think these buses will succeed. But I do think there is a way for operators to offer services like this buses, while being more cost effective and cheaper. And that is to use double decker intercity coaches.

Double Decker intercity coaches will mean we have a lot more space to work with. Thus we can have 6/9 such first class seats, with independent screens, 2x1 config etc, with small pantry and a toilet. Apart from these the bus will still be able to accommodate about 50 usual 2x2 seats like the usual Volvo/Merc buses of today.

Thus the operate will have a greater chance to break even due to the fact that per seat cost will be much lower. Plus he will also be able to offer the premium seats at a cheaper price to attract more demand, and be able to generate more margin from the premium seats.

And just to add something exciting into the mix. Here in India we have one of the world's leading double decker bus makers already operating a huge facility in north Karnantaka, with a equally big local player. I am obviously referring to MarcoPolo and their Indian partnership with Tata Motors, ie Tata MarcoPolo Motors.

If they do introduce one of their latest models, the Paradiso G7 1800DD, it would be really exciting. The G7 1800's smaller single decker brother, the G7 1200, was showcased a the last Auto Expo.

Some pics of the G7 1800DD.

[MaxTorque]

Originally Posted by TheARUN

I think India is not ready for this bus as yet, but then someone had to start sometime, thanks to SVLL for jumping into the fray first :-)

I too have the same opinion. We (Indians) are not ready for this service at this moment. I am not sure how how the travelers are going to treat those plush interiors. We need to wait and see the condition of those interiors after six months.

[treadmark]

Originally Posted by julupani

Like I said, before I dont think these buses will succeed. But I do think there is a way for operators to offer services like this buses, while being more cost effective and cheaper. And that is to use double decker intercity coaches.

completely, I have seen all / most of the intercity buses in Thailand are with two floors which help them in effective space utilization.
Usually the lower level will have premium class seats and a luggage compartment whilst the top layer will have 2 X 2 economy seat layouts. Again this not to do with Scania alone all other manufactures like Volvo, Sunlong, Rhino, Isuzu have buses in similar configuration. What surprises me is all will do a pretty decent speed of 120 Km/H on motorways in spite of their additional height.

Couple of pictures from search engines and the image credit lies with the individual owners.

[julupani]

Originally Posted by treadmark

completely, I have seen all / most of the intercity buses in Thailand are with two floors which help them in effective space utilization.
Usually the lower level will have premium class seats and a luggage compartment whilst the top layer will have 2 X 2 economy seat layouts. Again this not to do with Scania alone all other manufactures like Volvo, Sunlong, Rhino, Isuzu have buses in similar configuration. What surprises me is all will do a pretty decent speed of 120 Km/H on motorways in spite of their additional height.

Couple of pictures from search engines and the image credit lies with the individual owners.

Yes, exactly. Something like an aircraft, with lower level functioning as business class and upper level as economy class.

BTW, no major international bus maker like Scania, Iveco, Volvo, Mercedes, MAN have double decker buses per se. Its only bus body makers like MarcoPolo, IRIS Bus, Dennis, Irizar etc who have used the chassis from such premium manufacturers to make double decker buses.

As for the height, actually they are not that tall. You would think they would be because of two levels. But unlike the Volvo/Merc buses which we presently see, these dont have cavernous luggage space beneath. Instead most of that space is used to accomodate the lower level of seats. Another part is used to have a smaller in length but taller luggage compartment.

In reality most of these buses double decker buses are within 4.2m tall, while their single decker counterparts are around 3.8m tall. In India, as of now according to the CMVR double decker buses can have a height of upto 4.8m. Though with regard to the rules, while bus body regulations for single decker buses, as well as school buses and sleeper buses, have come into effect, the code for double decker buses is still being worked on. Hopefully that code too will come into effect soon and we will get to see double decker intercity coaches in India.

[DWind]

If the intention of operator is to only ferry more people with additional premium seats than double decker would work. But sadly in India this might work only on short, high dense routes like Mumbai-Pune (or Chennai-Bangalore). At other places the parcel load (which gets reduced due to Double Decker configuration) is what pays the bus operator all days in a week so Double Decker might not work here.

[julupani]

Originally Posted by DWind

If the intention of operator is to only ferry more people with additional premium seats than double decker would work. But sadly in India this might work only on short, high dense routes like Mumbai-Pune (or Chennai-Bangalore). At other places the parcel load (which gets reduced due to Double Decker configuration) is what pays the bus operator all days in a week so Double Decker might not work here.

But I think the extra seats, plus premium prices that can be charged for certain number of seats along with facilities like toilet will negate the need for a operator to ferry parcels on his bus. Thus the loss of luggage space will not hurt the operator of the bus.

Of course there are operators and routes where you desparately depend on parcels to make money, but that is not always the case. In fact I think most operators today dont make a huge lot of money from parcels.

Also,if double decker buses are used, not all will have premium 2x1 seats. If you completely fill up a double decker bus, you could probably have 70 passenger in a 2x2 config on both levels.

BTW, the point of carrying parcels, reminds me of another MarcoPolo bus, which is a bit crazy and odd, ie the Paradiso G7 1600. Take a look.







This seems like a double decker bus, bus the entire lower deck is meant for luggage. Thus the extra height is gained in the luggage bay, meaning more volume, and there is more space on the passenger deck as the full length of the bus can be used for passengers.

[ku69rd]

WOW DC you have managed it again. Why does he not use subtle colors at all? Why do they need to be so gaudy and in your face sort of setup? Generally people tend to sleep when the are travelling not sure how comfortable it would be.

From an operater's perspective am perplexed if SVLL can really maintain these buses for a good 6-9 months without degradation? The headsets does look fragile. Also how is the hygenie factor being accounted to? Not a great idea for leather seats as they can get easily torn or punctured.
This product might be targetted towards the elite people but how many would want to travel in this considering that time is their money.

Appears that DC is overdoing what Volvo seems to have perfected with their Sleep like a baby range of buses.

[Aditya]

Scania Commercial Vehicles India flagged off the first buses for SVLL Connect of Scania Metrolink Services in Mumbai. These buses will connect travelers from Mumbai to Surat and other destinations.



Scania inaugurated its Industrial Facility in Narasapura in Oct 2013. With an investment of Rs. 250 crore, this facility will serve as the centre of the company’s commercial operations in the country. Its ambition is to sell about 2,500 trucks and 1,000 buses per year in the Indian market within the next five years and employee about 800 people at this facility. The industrial operation at the factory currently consists of final assembly of trucks with bodywork. The service workshop and a central parts warehouse, is housed at the same site.

As part of the company’s strategy, Scania will inaugurate Phase II of the company’s production facility – the Bus factory.

Additionally, the company is establishing a complete service and dealership network in the country starting from South and West and later North and East.

Scania plans include bringing in new and innovative technologies through constant R&D in India followed by entry into a wide range of products and services. Scania will also, going forward, focus on newer concepts like operating lease to customers, alternate fuels, etc.