Mini community care
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• Continuing expansion in the welfare and community transport market has attracted more bodybuilders and vehicle manufacturers into this sector. At the seventh annual Community Transport Event held at Hatfield Polytechnic, PSV manufacturers showed a number of derivatives of successful local bus designs.
Manchester-based bodybuilder W B Cunliffe launched a new coachbuilt welfare bus on the Ford Transit chassis and Carlyle Works has developed a community transport version of its Carlyle 1 body on the Sherpa extra-long-wheelbase chassis. One of the first examples, fitted with a Hideaway wheelchair lift and 15 coach seats in place of the usual 20 bus seats, has been supplied to Ealing Community Transport.
MCW stimulated interest in its Metrorider midi by showing a Northumbria Bus Company example alongside display material showing how it can be adapted with a rear wheelchair lift. MCW also showed its Metrocab taxi in London Ambulance Service livery.
Major light van manufacturers at the show included Ford and Renault. Ford showed factory-finished Transit buses alongside conversions by Pilcher Greene, Dormobile and Mellor.
Peugeot Talbot has orders for a number of Freeway Welfare bus versions of its tri-axle design, including several for the specialist self-drive hire company, Sochulbus of Ashford Michell.