Dr. Richard takes delivery of thirty-six new Iveco Crossway Low Entry interurban buses in Oberwart

Public transport in Őrvidék, the region also inhabited by Hungarians and known in Austria as Burgenland, is gaining new vehicles after the fleet of the local branch of Dr. Richard Gruppe was recently expanded with 36 Iveco Crossway Low Entry interurban buses. The company operates more than twenty bus routes in the central and southern parts of the province, including the B01 Vienna–Güssing service. The vehicles were ceremonially handed over on 27 May at the Oberwart depot of Austria’s largest privately owned bus company, in the presence of around 80 invited guests, although Iveco Bus has only now reported on the event through its official channels.

The buses, wearing the livery of the provincial transport organiser, Verkehrsbetriebe Burgenland GmbH (VBB) , were presented to the press in the presence of Dr. Richard employees and partners as well as government officials. At the ceremony, the vehicles were blessed by Lutheran church leader Herwig Wallner and by Hungarian parish priest Father János Schauermann, after which they entered service on the roads of the province along the Hungarian border. The new additions can be seen on all regional services operated by Dr. Richard, where they are replacing the company’s previous buses.

Designed for suburban-style regional operations, the buses have a 1-2-0 door configuration and a functionally arranged interior offering 46 seats, 25 standing places and one wheelchair space. In its press material, Iveco Bus specifically highlights the faster passenger flow and improved accessibility made possible by the low-entry layout compared with standard-floor interurban models, while the equipment mentioned includes the passenger information system and modern safety and driver assistance systems. The vehicles are fitted with the more powerful option, the six-cylinder, 8.7-litre, 360 hp (265 kW) Iveco Cursor 9 diesel engine; the type of transmission has not been disclosed. According to the parties, the entry into service of further examples of the cost-effective Crossway family, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, reinforces the long-standing cooperation between Iveco Bus and Dr. Richard Gruppe.

Dr. Richard Gruppe, which today employs well over 1,900 people and was founded as a family business more than 90 years ago, is currently the largest privately owned bus company in the German-speaking world, operating around 1,100 buses in Austria and Switzerland. The group, which achieved revenue of more than €230 million last year, is also open to alternative drivetrains: a few months ago it also put Austria’s first long-distance electric bus fleet into service.

Photos: Dr. Richard