PRODUCTION at a Scarborough coach manufacturer is stepping up a gear after the firm secured an order from a national transport group.

Plaxton has won a contract to supply its new model to Stagecoach for use on its megabus.com network across the country.

Engineers in Scarborough have been working on developing the new Interdeck Elite, following a £1 million investment from Plaxton’s parent company Alexander Dennis.

The new model will be the first through-deck coach to be built in Britain, and was designed in a bid to offer easier wheelchair access while maximising capacity.

Stagecoach is the first customer after ordering 11 vehicles from Plaxton to be built on Volvo chassis for delivery in late 2012, early 2013.

Kevin Wood, sales and marketing director at Plaxton, said: “This is an exciting addition to our market-leading range.

“We initially launched the Elite as a high-specification, tri-axle 14 metre coach in 2008, but always intended that it would develop into a range of top-quality models.

“First was the 12.6 metre two-axle model followed by the maximum length 15 metre in 2009, and now comes the Interdeck Elite, which will be available both as an express coach and as a touring model.”

Mr Wood said two features on the model stand out. Firstly he says there is no need to fit a wheelchair lift, while the coach still has the ability to offer up to 72 seats in a range of seating layouts.

Mr Wood added: “As well as building coaches for megabus.com we will be in a position to take orders for delivery to other customers in time for the 2013 season.”

The new coach will be based on Plaxton’s proven stainless steel technology, used in its Panther and Elite productions. However it will also introduce a new structure to accommodate the 3.9 metre high vehicle, which offers the potential for additional models in the future.

The Interdeck Elite order has been placed as part of Stagecoach’s £600 million investment in almost 400 ‘greener’ vehicles for its fleet. Stagecoach carries around 2.5 million passengers on its 8.000 buses every day on major bus operations in London, Liverpool, Newcastle, Hull, Manchester, Oxford, and Sheffield.

THE North Yorkshire Moors Railway will be making a special appearance in the Great British Countryside series on BBC One.

The railway, along with two of their volunteers Stephen Hogg and Gerry Skelton, one of its most experienced drivers, will appear in the hour-long episode at 8pm tomorrow that this week focuses on Yorkshire as Hugh Dennis and Julia Bradbury explore the countryside.

Marketing manager Danielle Bradley said: “Hugh Dennis enjoyed a fantastic day out on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway last September. So much so, that the BBC film crew came back in early December with a helicopter to shoot some fantastic aerial shots of the Pullman dining train, steaming through the North York Moors National Park.”

Trains will be running on weekends from Saturday March 3 to Sunday March 25, with daily services resuming from Saturday March 31.

THE future of two traditional Scarborough businesses is shrouded in mystery.

T Gibson’s Butchers and adjoining delicatessen, Gibson’s at 25, in Ramshill Road, were shut yesterday, leaving customers shocked.

The Francis Tearooms, in South Street, which had a distinctive 1930s style, was also closed, with landlords confirming they had changed the locks and taken over the premises.

Traders told the Evening News that they believed the family-run Gibson empire had closed down.

The Evening News tried to contact owner Tony Gibson but did not receive a reply. The butchery arm of the Gibson’s empire was renowned for its meat, and was named Yorkshire’s most dynamic and exciting family-run business at Barclays Local Business Awards in 2009.

Not far away in South Cliff, a notice had been placed in a window in Francis Tearooms telling customers the tearooms were under refurbishment and would re-open soon.

But there was also a note in another window to Jeremy Bentley, the cafe owner, from Manchester-based solicitors acting on behalf of the landlord.

It said: “The landlord has taken peaceful possession of the property and the locks have been changed to re-secure possession thereof as a result of breaches of the lease.

“The landlord gives notice that all goods contained in the building that do not form part of the fixtures and fittings are ready for collection.”

]]> 1.4269361 Tue, 21 Feb 2012 12:11:53 +0000