Major US deal for Ballymena bus firm
A bus builder from the North today won an international order for its mould-breaking new Rapid Transit Vehicle.
The £30m (€43.9m) order was placed with Wrightbus of Ballymena, Co Antrim by a US transport company.
Wrightbus will supply 50 of its StreetCars to the Regional Transportation Commission in Southern Nevada.
The American company has taken two further options for an additional 50 vehicles each.
The 62-foot long StreetCar has been designed to encourage greater use of public transport. It is something like an ultra-modern tram but does not need rails.
The vehicles, which can seat more than 100 passengers, will run on hybrid diesel-electric power.
All 50 vehicles will be built in Ballymena, with first deliveries due in the spring of 2008 and the last a year later.
They will be put to use on two new rapid transport corridors, one serving downtown Las Vegas and the other in nearby Boulder City.
William Wright, chairman of the Wright Group, said: “This is a major new chapter for the company and all its employees, both in technical and financial terms as well as further developing our presence in the North American market.
“Importantly, it also underlines the potential for StreetCar as a cost effective and readily deliverable alternative to infrastructure-intensive rapid transit systems throughout the world.”
