Eaglehurst
06 Jan 2015
EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTED I returned from Norway to Cardiff Wales Airport on Sunday and decided to use the transfer bus to Cardiff and then take a taxi home from Cardiff centre. The bus arrived within minutes of my leaving the terminal building and I was pleased to see that it was a new Optare. My pleasure was short-lived.On boarding the bus, it looked smart and the seats were very plush, well shaped and comfortable. This turned out to be its only redeeming feature from a user's point of view.Firstly, it was a bus - far better suited to urban passenger transport than to airport transfer duties. It had no serious luggage-carrying capability and cases had to be in the aisles or on the seats. This, I freely accept, is not the fault of Optare but of the service operator who should have chosen a vehicle suitable for the purpose.When in motion, however, the deficiencies really became apparent. The bus felt like something out of the 50's. The suspension (if it had any) was harsh and noisy: we felt and heard every piece of gravel, cat's eye, etc.. The body shook and rattled. Even the window glass shook. The axle growled and the brakes graunched. I've not had an experience like that since my school days - and I do not want another.What has Optare done - put a modern engine in a 1950's (or earlier!) chassis? The new City of Cardiff service buses are soooo much better.As a shareholder in Optare for some years I'm horrified. I now regard this as a write-off, not a recovery situation.E
