How Euro 6 Effects Coach Hire
Euro 6 Vs Coach Hire Rates
The endless challenge in our industry is balancing rising costs with customers’ hire rates. From increasing fuel rates to upgrading coach fleets in line with Euro 6 emission compliance, its a non-stop balancing act. Plus with Brexit upon us, the big question is how can we offer environmentally-friendly coach travel and still be competitive?
What Is Euro 6
Firstly, what is Euro 6? Well, it is the European Union’s directive to reduce harmful pollutants from petrol and diesel vehicle emissions. Further to this, many UK cities have introduced Clean Air Zones to incentivise low-emission vehicles and fine or penalised more damaging vehicles.
That is why conscientious coach operators, such as ourselves, are upgrading their fleets to newer, lower-emission vehicles.
The Balancing Act Of A Growing Coach Company
It has been a truly exciting couple of years and we have seen our growth accelerate. So too has our investment in our fleet. For instance, we have purchased a new vehicle every 3 months to ensure that you enjoy your journey, while we drive toward being fully Euro 6 compliant.
Although our renewal investment for both vehicle comfort and Euro 6 compliance is essential, we have to consider it when it comes to our fee structure. After all, we need to carefully balance this cost to ensure that our business can thrive without forgetting what’s important to our customers.
“We compete as best as we can. It’s about trying to get a happy median. Costs rise every year, but you can’t just put that cost on the customer. We’ve not been able to increase our rates a lot over the years.”
Julie Jack, Hunters Executive Coaches
The Cost Of Great Coach Hire
As a rapidly growing coach company, the two things that we believe are most important to our customers are service and price.
SERVICE – In regards to service, this is down to our drivers and our coaches to make your journey as stress-free as possible (from initial booking to final drop-off). So we have to offer competitive rates of pay to attract the best drivers. We continuously review and revise our quoting, booking, travel and aftercare services to make sure they are flawless. We have to invest in the most reliable in-house coach maintenance team to keep our vehicles tip-top. Finally, our fleet is regularly renewed so coaches are modern, clean, comfortable and compliant with the latest emission control regulations.
PRICE – When it comes to price, it’s about offering great value for money and being competitive. However, we know that being the best does not always mean that we are the cheapest. Yet, we do keep our renewal and service costs to a minimum when it comes to the price you pay.
In conclusion; we keep the cost of excellent coach hire as low as we can, while our fleet is as environmentally-friendly as possible.
Not All Operators Run To The Same Standards – Here Is How-To Tell
“We’re competing against operators who don’t run vehicles to a similar standard”
Allistair Bayliss, Bayliss Executive Travel
Here at TJs Travel, we are committed to supporting Leeds Clean Air Zone. We aim to be a majority Euro 6 compliant travel company. So we believe that investment in new vehicles is worth it.
In summary, we take moral responsibility for paying staff fairly, maintaining our vehicles correctly and complying with emission standards in an industry that needs to be governed better. This is why you should not rule us out us on price, especially when comparing us to operators who don’t run to a similar standard. To avoid falling into this trap, here are some questions to ask your coach operator:
- What’s the age of their coaches?
- Are they Euro 6 compliant?
- How regularly are their coaches serviced?
- Are their drivers DBS checked?
- What’s the standard of the coach general interior?
- Is there a functioning toilet on board?
In closing, you should choose the safest rather than the cheapest operator. After all, professional drivers, hygienic seats and safety-assured coaches that result in zero complaints are worth the tiny price tag more. That’s why you should choose us!
