Long Win Bus
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| Parent | Transport International Holdings |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1996 |
| Service type | Bus services |
| Alliance | Kowloon Motor Bus |
| Routes | 19 (December 2013) |
| Fleet | 186 (October 2015)[1] |
| Annual ridership | 33.2 million (2013) |
| Website | www.lwb.hk |
Long Win Bus (Chinese: 龍運巴士) is a bus company operating franchised services in Hong Kong. It was established in 1996 to provide bus service between Hong Kong International Airport, North Lantau New Town and New Territories. It is a subsidiary of Transport International Holdings. It is under the same senior management as Kowloon Motor Bus.
History
Long Win Bus was established in 1996 to operate peak-hour services after the opening of the Tsing Ma Bridge.[2][3]
The first route operated by Long Win Bus was route E31 (Tung Chung to Tsuen Wan Pier when newly introduced), served by Volvo Olympians. But later on, Volvo Olympians have been retired from the bus fleet, and were transferred to its parent company, Kowloon Motor Bus.
It is a rival to the Cityflyer service provided by Citybus. It operates Airbus routes to the Airport. Long Win Bus also operates Disneyland routes.
In 2002, there were an average of 56,000 passengers per day. The company's franchise was extended from June 2003 to May 2013. It has been extended again until May 2023.[4][5]
Fleet
As of December 2013, Long Win Bus operated 19 routes with a fleet of 172 double-decker buses.[6]
Long Win Bus has only one Duple Metsec bodied Dennis Trident 3 which serves the route A41P, along with other Dennis Tridents. It was the only Long Wins bus with an exterior electronic destination display until the advent of the TransBus Enviro500s.
Although this is rare, Long Win's buses also serve some KMB routes during times of bus shortages. Once a Long Win Dennis Trident catered Kowloon Motor Bus' route 960 for a day. Some of the Long Win's buses also have been used for serve KMB routes includes 271 and 1A during 1997-1998, where the buses are ready in service while Chek Lap Kok airport is not opened yet.
Difference between buses for Long Win's Airbus service and Cityflyer service
Long Win's buses for Airbus routes are generally alike compared to Cityflyer buses, but there are differences.
First, the buses used are the Alexander ALX500 bodied Trident, instead of the Duple Metsec Trident for Cityflyer. Second, the seats are similar to those on the Cityflyer buses, but with no foot rests provided. Third, the luggage racks are not as wide as those in Cityflyer buses, but still sturdy. Lastly, there is no security camera.
Both Cityflyer and Long Win Bus feature a destination screen which provides information of the next stop and Hong Kong scenery sites.
Rivals
- Citybus (Hong Kong)
- Cityflyer - the rival of Long Win Bus, in terms of Airport bus services
References
- ^ "Average age and respective numbers of buses in the fleet of each franchised bus company" (PDF). Legislative Council. 18 November 2015.
- ^ About LWB Long Win Bus Company
- ^ Company Overview Transport International Holdings
- ^ Grant of new franchises to three bus companies Government of Hong Kong 24 April 2012
- ^ Long Win Bus Transport Department
- ^ More About Long Win Long Win Bus Company May 2014
See also
External links
Media related to Long Win Bus at Wikimedia Commons- Official website (includes information on Long Win Bus)
- Information on Hong Kong government's website
