Villager Bus has taken delivery of a new Mellor Orion bus to add to its existing fleet.

The Orion is designed to be robust, especially for community transportation. The entirely configurable passenger area can meet the demands of the Villager Bus service that carries 300 passengers from 66 villages in the North Cotswolds every week.

Villager Bus’ Orion has a rapid sliding entry door, luggage pen, Eberspächer air climate system, and is configured to carry 16 passengers with all-age provision seatbelts throughout.

Keith Gowing, Chairman at Villager Bus, said:

“Our first Orion was such a quantum leap in capability from our old van conversions that it is difficult to remember now how different it felt. We have been operating Orions for five years, and our passengers love the spaciousness and light, airy feel of the interior as well as the low-step and flat floor.

“The handling and performance makes driving very easy and, given its size, the fuel consumption is remarkable. We regularly get better than 25mpg on our rural narrow roads which include a large amount of stop start driving.”

The Villager Bus service has been running since 1982 providing transport to small, often isolated villages which have no other public transport facilities. It operates in the North Cotswold areas of Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Warwickshire.