7th November 2006

~ Chris Heaps, Traffic Commissioner, opens Metroline’s New Engineering Facility ~

Chris Heaps, Traffic Commissioner for the South Eastern & Metropolitan Traffic Area, officially opened Metroline's new engineering facility at their garage in North Wembley on Tuesday 7th November. Hosting Mr Heaps' tour, Russell Hargrave, Engineering Director at Metroline explained a number of innovations and future plans that set this facility apart from others in London.

Metroline has invested £500,000 in converting an existing warehouse at the North Wembley garage site. The new facility will not only provide a first-class working environment, state-of-the-art equipment and excellent amenities for engineers, but will also be the pilot site for a major initiative using the latest business improvement methodologies to deliver significantly improved performance.

Engineers at North Wembley are able to work on up to five vehicles at any one time with new hi-tech equipment including Bluetooth-enabled vehicle lifts that need no trailing power lines, first class internal lighting and a high standard of facilities. The business improvement programme now underway at the site will significantly enhance garage performance through the elimination of waste and inefficiency in both engineering and the supporting logistics chain. Not only will this lead to a more reliable and punctual bus service, it will encourage a much greater focus on engineering quality as well as quantity. This in turn will benefit North Wembley's drivers and, most importantly, its passengers through a better and more reliable bus service.

Commenting on the new facility, Russell Hargrave, Metroline Engineering Director said, "I am delighted to see this new facility operational on time and on budget. Not only does it provide Metroline with a class-leading workshop for garages of this size in London, but it will also be the launch-pad for a business improvement initiative that will comprehensively overhaul Metroline's Engineering and Logistics in the coming months. North Wembley will be the lead garage in a programme that will deliver a better and more reliable service for all our customers as it is rolled out across the company next year".

Before unveiling the commemorative plaque, Mr Heaps said, "As Traffic Commissioners we deal with the problems facing bus operators but we also have an interest in celebrating the good. All the London operators have high maintenance standards and Metroline will be able to do even better with these new facilities. It gives me great pleasure to open the new North Wembley Engineering Facility."

Metroline Chief Executive Officer, Jaspal Singh commented, "Metroline is very proud of this brand new engineering facility for North Wembley which will provide full-fledged engineering support for the entire North Wembley fleet. The substantial investment Metroline has made in this facility underscores our earnest aspiration to be London's best bus operator."

Note to editors:
- Photo: from left, Russell Hargrave, Metroline Engineering Director; Chris Heaps, Traffic Commissioner for the South Eastern & Metropolitan Traffic Area; Jaspal Singh, Metroline Chief Executive Officer.
- Metroline is one of the top five London-based bus companies, currently running 13.5% of the capital’s bus services under contract to Transport for London.
- Metroline carries 250 million passengers every year, operates 93 routes, covers over 37.5 million journey miles each year, employs almost 3700 people and runs a fleet of over 1,200 buses in North, West and Central London and South Hertfordshire.
- Metroline is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Singapore based ComfortDelGro Corporation Limited, which is the world's second largest listed land transport company.
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Enquiries:
For further Metroline enquiries please contact:
Heather Whitbread, Communications Coordinator, Metroline 020 8218 8824