Featured Bus : The Volvo Olympian
The hugely popular double-decker Leyland Olympian series was superseded by the Volvo Olympian series in the early 90s. The Volvo Olympian was offered in 3 variants; 12-metre 3-axle, 11-metre 3-axle and 10-metre 2-axle. The latter was predominantly in a non-airconditioned configuration. Layout of the Olympian was similar to the predecessor Leyland Olympian but fitted with 60% new Volvo components, such as engines, electrical and wiring systems. The TD102KF engine, capable of producing around 300bhp of power and a capacity of 9.6 litres, was offered initially, before the enhanced D10A engine was made available in the late-90s. The Olympian can be coupled with either the ZF or Voith gearboxes. The Volvo Olympian is still being operated by many bus operators in Hong Kong, the United Kingdom and also Singapore.
The then Singapore Bus Services (SBS) have been a long-time operator of the Olympian series, previously a model under the Leyland marque. Satisfied with the performance of the 3-axle Leyland Olympian Superbuses, SBS placed a new order for 201 3-axle Volvo Olympian double-decker Superbuses, including one evaluation unit, and 100 2-axle Volvo Olympian double-deckers in 1993. The 2-axle variants were to be the last non-airconditioned buses to be purchased by SBS. The first 26 buses (13 3-axle and 13 2-axle Olympians) were deployed on Service 10, then operating between Tampines and Clementi Interchanges. The 3-axle Olympians were registered in the 92xx/93xx series while the 2-axle Olympians were registered in the 72xx series.
The TD102KF engine was fitted on all of the 301 Olympians of the first batch. Part of the 201 units of Superbuses acquired, 101 units (SBS 9200G to SBS 9300B) were unique because they were the only Superbuses with 2 side emergency exits on the upper deck, in addition to the usual rear emergency exit. The interior was similar to the Leyland Olympian Superbuses, with blue seats and grey aircon ducts. The remaining 100 units (SBS 9301Z to SBS 9400X) were similar to the earlier 101 units except that SBS decided against the side emergency exits on the upper deck. All 201 units, fitted with 4-speed ZF 4HP500 gearboxes, were put into service in batches between 1994 and 1995. The buses were fitted with the Alexander Royale bodywork and airconditioning units were supplied by Sutrak.
The non-airconditioned 2-axle Olympians were fitted with 3-speed Voith gearboxes, a first ever for a double-decker in Singapore. The interior was also more spacious than the previous non-airconditioned double-decks of SBS. All 100 units were fitted with the Alexander Royale bodywork and were operational in 1994. Most of these buses can now be found at Boon Lay Interchange, operating on the Jurong Industrial services.
SBS placed a follow-up order for 200 3-axle Olympians. The buses in this batch were generally different from the previous batch. The latest batch of Volvo Olympian Superbuses were fitted with the enhanced D10A engine, a modified Alexander Royale bodywork and new interiors. The D10A engine were rated at 285bhp with a capacity of 9.6 litres, and coupled with the 4-speed ZF 4HP500 gearbox. Special hammers were provided in place of the conventional emergency exits which were removed. This resulted in the absence of the rear upper-deck emergency exit, allowing more space for advertising. Exterior-wise, new square headlights and wider entrance/exit doors were adopted. A new red-themed interior were also adopted, along with yellow grabpoles and ergonomic bench seats. However, not all of the 200 units were fitted with Sutrak airconditioning units. 50 units were fitted with NipponDenso aircons. The buses in this batch were registered in the 94xx/95xx series. The first unit were launched on 17th August 1996, by Rear-Admiral Teo Chee Hean at an event at SBS’ Braddell Bus Park.By 1998, all 200 units have been put into revenue service at various SBS depots islandwide.
By the end of the decade, SBS had placed an additional order of 70 units, which were to be the last Volvo Olympians in the world. Technically and physically similar to those in the second batch, these buses came fitted with dress rims on the tyres. NipponDenso became the standard supplier of the airconditioning units for the buses. They were registered in the 96xx series. In all, SBS have acquired a whopping 571 units of Volvo Olympians, making it one of the largest operators of the type in the world. The buses are expected to be operational till at least 2017, when their mandatory operational lifespan of 17 years expires.
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This entry was originally published in April 2007.
