THE Island has taken delivery of a number of new buses which will be added to the Bus Vannin fleet.

Six silver Mercedes Citaro single decker buses have arrived in the Island from Mannheim in Germany.

They will be used to replace some of the older buses in the fleet which will be sold as they are beyond their economic operational life.

The Department of Community, Culture and Leisure is responsible for public transport in the Island and has a budget of £1.2 million for bus renewals annually.

Minister David Cretney MHK said: "These single decker buses have a total capacity of 70 passengers compared with a capacity of up to 78 on the double decker buses they are replacing. So the new Mercedes will be able to carry a similar number of passengers with the advantage of being able to operate much more economically due to their size.

"Not only did Mercedes offer the best value for money per bus but they offer the best whole life costs. The build quality you can expect from an experienced Mercedes factory is accompanied by further savings on servicing, spares and repairs, reducing costs while also offering passengers a very high level of comfort."

The buses will remain silver to save money customising them. The department has said this will also result in cheaper spares and less time and expense for panel repairs.

There will be 12 new buses in total. Delivery of the rest of the buses is expected at the end of this month. Following driver familiarisation, training and pre-service preparations the new buses are scheduled to be in service in July.