Sharma transports picks up the new Volvo B9R / 9400 6x2 bus

Sharma Transports have picked up the new Volvo B9R or the new Volvo 9400 6x2 bus for its long distance route.

The new Volvo 9400 6x2 is longer than the current B7R and comes with a 9 Litre engine. Read more about this bus by clicking here

See pictures of the Volvo B7R HERE

Sharma Transports' Mercedes Benz bus crash
Book a VOLVO B9R ticket online NOW!

Volvo 9400 6x2 : India's first multi-axle bus in the form of Volvo B9R

Just when I thought Volvo would reply back with something after Mercedes launched there bus in India, i got the news. Volvo today launched India's first multi-axle bus called the Volvo 9400 6x2. It is also called the Volvo B9R

This is 1.7 longer than the B7R or the Volvo 8400 4x2 bus. Moreover, it offers 53 reclining semi-sleeper type seats, as apposed to 45 for the previous bus.

Ofcourse, it comes at a slightly higher price of Rs 85 but Volvo believes that the new B9R is cheaper when it comes to per seat cost.

The new Volvo B9R comes powered by a 9-litre engine, as compared to a 7-litre for the normal B7R

Watch this space for more.

Here is the article from businessstandard
Volvo Buses India Pvt Ltd (VBIPL), a part of Swedish bus maker Volvo Bus Corporation, today launched India’s first luxury AC coach with a multi-axle configuration. With a 9-litre rear engine and a 6x2 configuration, the Volvo 9400 6x2 (B9R) will be fully-manufactured in its Bangalore plant and marketed in the domestic market.

According to Akash Passey, managing director, VBIPL, “With the launch of this model, Volvo now has three standard offerings — 4x2 inter-city bus, city bus and 6x2 inter-city bus — for the Indian market. With this new model’s launch Volvo is broadening its product offering and choices for the customer and the passengers.”

Volvo has already bagged orders for 40 multi-axle buses, of which three were delivered today and another 20 buses will be delivered in the next two weeks, he said. Volvo has priced this bus at Rs 85 lakh (ex-factory). The bus features Electronic Brake System, a technology that ensures the highest safety for passengers and driver along with various safety features like frontal impact safety, roll-over protection among others.

For the year-ending December 2008, Volvo is likely to register 120 per cent jump in sales to 450 units over 2007 and for 2009, it is expecting a growth of 25 per cent. It plans to ramp up its production capacity to touch 1,000 buses by 2010, he said.

Presently, Volvo has a capacity to produce 50 buses per month at its Hoskote plant, which was opened in January this year as a joint venture with the Azad Group of Bangalore.

Passey said the company expects a significant growth in its sales over the next five years from the Bus Rapid Transit System being implemented in over 60 cities in the country. Volvo’s plant in Bangalore will initially cater to the requirements of domestic customers and will start meeting export orders from customers in West Asia and Africa by end of 2009, he said.

Related Reading
Mercedes launches bus in India
Book a Mercedes or a Volvo bus ticket now!

Ahmedabad to Shirdi seater and sleeper bus timing / fare

Here is a list of buses from Ahmebabad to Shirdi

I could not find any Volvo buses from Ahmedabad to Shirdi. Only A/C and non A/c seater and sleeper buses run on this route.

1. Gujarat Travels seater bus (Non/Ac 2x1 seating)
Departure:5:00pm (Paldi Char Rasta), 5:45pm (Jodhpur Char Rasta), 6:30pm (CTM Char Rasta)
Arrival: 6:00am (Near temple)
Ticket cost: Rs 450
To book, click HERE



2. Gujarat Travels sleeper bus (Non/Ac 2x1 sleeping)
Departure:5:00pm (Paldi Char Rasta), 5:45pm (Jodhpur Char Rasta), 6:30pm (CTM Char Rasta)
Arrival: 6:00am (Near temple)
Ticket cost: Rs 600
To book, click HERE

3. Maitreya Travels seater bus (Non/Ac 2x1 seating)
Departure:5:00pm (Jodhpur Char Rasta), 5:30pm (Opp. Navchetan High School), 6:00pm (CTM Char Rasta)
Arrival: 6:00am (Near temple)
Ticket cost: Rs 350
To book, click HERE

4. Maitreya Travels sleeper bus (Non/Ac 2x1 sleeping)
Departure:5:00pm (Jodhpur Char Rasta), 5:30pm (Opp. Navchetan High School), 6:00pm (CTM Char Rasta)
Arrival: 6:00am (Near temple)
Ticket cost: Rs 450
To book, click HERE

5. Rajkamal Travels seater bus (Non/Ac 2x2 seater)
Departure:5:30pm (Jodhpur Char Rasta), 6pm (Paldi Char Rasta), 6:30pm (Opp Janpath Restaurant)
Arrival: 6:30am (Near temple)
Ticket cost: Rs 400
To book, click HERE

6. Rajkamal Travels sleeping bus (Non/Ac 2x2 sleeping)
Departure:5:30pm (Jodhpur Char Rasta), 6pm (Paldi Char Rasta), 6:30pm (Opp Janpath Restaurant)
Arrival: 6:30am (Near temple)
Ticket cost: Rs 500
To book, click HERE

7. Shree Hari Travels A/C seater bus (A/c 2x1 seater)
Departure:6pm (Jodhpur Char Rasta), 6:30pm (Reliance Fresh), 7:00pm (CTM Char Rasta)
Arrival: 7:00am (Near temple)
Ticket cost: Rs 450
To book, click HERE

8. Shree Hari Travels A/C sleeping bus (A/c 2x1 sleeper)
Departure:6pm (Jodhpur Char Rasta), 6:30pm (Reliance Fresh), 7:00pm (CTM Char Rasta)
Arrival: 7:00am (Near temple)
Ticket cost: Rs 600
To book, click HERE

9. Indani Travels A/C seater bus (A/c 2x2 seater)
Departure:6:30pm (Paldi Char Rasta), 6:45pm (Janpath Restaurant)
Arrival: 7:30am (Near temple)
Ticket cost: Rs 400
To book, click HERE

10. Indani Travels A/C sleeper bus (A/c 2x2 sleeper)
Departure:6:30pm (Paldi Char Rasta), 6:45pm (Janpath Restaurant)
Arrival: 7:30am (Near temple)
Ticket cost: Rs 500
To book, click HERE

Related Reading
Top speed of Volvo B7R / Chinese King Long buses
Mercedes Benz Buses come to India
Sharma Volvo review : Pune to Davanagere
The JCBL Kinglong bus (chinese)

Neeta Volvo

Neeta Volvo is a big name in West India. Based in Pune, this Volvo operator has one of the biggest fleet of Volvo B7R buses. Neeta Volvo came to fame with the running of Volvo B7R buses on the Mumbai to Pune and Pune to Mumbai route. Buses from the Mumbai side originate either from Boriveli or Dadar and end at Pune station and vice-versa. The frequency of buses from either end is the best.

However, the condition of buses is pathetic to say the least. Neeta Volvo has also gained a bad name when it comes to customer service including punctuality. For example, the Dadar bus (bound for Pune) doesnt start from Dadar main area (from where the Shivneri Volvo starts). Passengers are taken in a small bus to the main starting point. Then, Neeta Volvo usually has 12 or 13 rows of seats as opposed to say 11 for Shivneri Volvo. Plus, they tend to stop at every possible place to pick passengers. At an average, the time taken by Neeta Volvo from Dadar to Pune station is 4.5 hours, an hour more than Shivneri.




Neeta Volvo also runs on other routes like Mumbai to Mahabaleshwar, Pune to Nashik, Pune to Goa etc. Recently, Neeta became one of the first few Mercedes Benz bus customers in India.

Related Reading
BOOK A NEETA VOLVO TICKET NOW!
1.Neeta Volvo Experiences
2.Top speed of Volvo B7R buses
3.Mercedes Benz buses come to India

Top speed of Volvo B7R / 9400 and the JCBL Kinglong bus

UPDATED : SEE THIS VIDEO OF THE VOLVO B7R DOING ALMOST 120KM/H!

Many people have wondered how fast the Volvo B7R or the 9400 series run. Even the Chinese KingLong buses made by JCBL run.

I have travelled numerous times on both the buses now. While on the long distance routes like Mumbai-Bangalore, the Volvo drivers keep the bus around the 100km/h mark for saving fuel, the shorter routes like Mumbai-Pune have these drivers stretching the Volvo to around 110km/h mark to make up time. Neeta travels for example have their old rusty buses running almost full throttle at 110-115mark. I have seen newer Volvo B7Rs of Sharma / VRL keeping 100-105 on long distances, with short bursts of 110-115km/h.

I can safely say that the Volvo B7R / 9400 series can nudge the 120km/h mark and beyond with ease.

Coming to the JCBL KingLong buses, though they are low on power, the taller gearing allows for high speed cruising. At a recent Pune-Mumbai trip, I happened to sit right up front and saw the driver holding 110-115km/h on the expressway with constant bursts of 120-125km/h. Thats bloody fast! The bus was still smooth at 125km/h and i think it would have managed to go past 130km/h as well.

These buses are powerful and fast. I have seen the Volvo B7R do 520km in 7hours. Thats 74km/h avg. Include the toll-booth stops and bad roads and u can imagine how fast these are!

CLICK HERE TO BOOK VOLVO / KINGLONG / MERCEDES BUS TICKETS ONLINE

Pune to Delhi on Goa Express

Goa Express? Thats a train right? Whats a train doing on this Volvo blog?
Well, I have been travelling a lot on Volvo : from Pune to Mumbai / Mumbai to Pune to long distance like Bangalore to Mumbai / Pune to Davanagere etc.

I had been wanting to know how it feels on a distance train journey - how good or bad it is. So i took the Goa Express from Pune to Delhi on the morning of 27th September. The train was running a bit late and we left Pune by 4:35am, reaching Delhi (Nizamuddin station) the next day at around 7am. Thats around 27hours for a 1500odd km journey. Yep, Volvo buses are still faster. Anyday

At the end of the journey, here are a few points i noticed.

1. A/C III tier are cheaper than Volvo buses (per km basis)
2. The berths are not comfy to sit on. Buses have better seats - any day
3. Trains can be boring. No TVs you see.
4. Bus trips give you an insight to so many cities as u tend to pass thru them.
5. Getting reservation in trains is difficult. I got mine on a Tatkal (total fare came out to be around 1500odd bucks)
6. Trains have loos all the time!
7. U have the railway staff serving something or the other all the time.

In the end, the only hassels i see with train services are getting tickets / and the hard seats.

Read these related posts as well

1. How to go from Mumbai to Pune and vice versa on Volvo buses
2. The JCBL Kinglong bus
3. Mercedes Buses come to India

Mercedes Benz Buses come to India

UPDATE : SHARMA TRANSPORTS' MERDECES BENZ BUS CRASH

Mercedes Benz have finally launched their buses in India. The bodies are being made by Sutlej body builders. We already had the Volvo B7R buses and the Chinese King Long buses and now the Mercedes Benz. Three buses have already been picked up by Sharma Transports, Konduskur and Neeta each.

I will keep you updated on how the bus is from the inside and how it feels over bad roads.

Images : www.team-bhp.com, a leading automotive forum in India

ALSO SEE:
JCBL KINGLONG BUSES
VOLVO B7R PICTURES