The French Southern Alps passenger transportation company opted for the Allison-equipped Van Hool EX 16L coach for reliability, coach uptime and to increase passenger and cargo capacity.

Paris, July 2022 – Société Cars Alpes Littoral (SCAL), a passenger transportation company located in Gap in the French Southern Alps, recently renewed its equipment by acquiring a Van Hool EX 16 L coach equipped with an Allison fully automatic transmission. The company chose this Allison-equipped vehicle for its reliability, coach uptime, additional seating and luggage storage capacity.

SCAL has 128 employees and 97 coaches and buses and operates nine sites in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. It connects the regional network of the South region, the Hautes-Alpes department, the Marseille agglomeration from Gap as well as urban and interurban transport from Gap and Digne. SCAL chose the Van Hool EX 16 L equipped with an Allison fully automatic transmission for its route linking Gap to Briançon, one of its most challenging at 85 kilometers in length with 581 meters of elevation gain and two round trips per day at 36 km/h.

"The SCAL fleet works 364 days a year, on steep routes with a very high occupancy rate, as we are often the only public transportation solution," said Yann Pellegrin, President of SCAL SAS. “The Allison fully automatic transmission is the perfect solution to ensure maximum vehicle uptime on these challenging roads. This transmission optimizes gear changes by avoiding untimely shifts and maximizing the torque and power potential of the engine. The Allison transmission is as comfortable climbing a mountain pass as it is in traffic jams or for very precise maneuvers to get into the tightest spaces.”

The Allison transmission automatically manages gear changes, using the FuelSense 2.0® software, which chooses the best gear at any time according to road conditions and the driver's needs. This intelligent and adaptive software takes advantage of gear changes, without losing power and inertia, as only a fully automatic transmission can do. The torque is transmitted continuously from the engine to the wheels without loss of energy.

The hydraulic retarder, coupled with the fully automatic transmission, is a source of savings with the drastic reduction in wear and brake replacement, which is particularly important for SCAL on these mountainous routes.

For drivers, the Allison automatic transmission provides undeniable comfort, with smooth gear changes and exceptional maneuverability. Regardless of their experience, drivers can concentrate on the road with confidence thanks to FuelSense 2.0® software’s optimization of gear changes.

Furthermore, with the Allison fully automatic transmission, vehicle availability is close to 100% because no breakage or overheating, such as that of a dry clutch, is possible. The Allison transmission only requires draining and changing filters at scheduled intervals, regardless of the difficulty of the routes, the traffic jams encountered, the type of driving and the experience of the drivers.

“We provided SCAL, with Van Hool, with a very efficient driveline in this mountainous region. This is an undeniable asset for SCAL for the regularity of its fleet, but also for its attractiveness to drivers in a period when recruitment is very difficult,” said Stéphane Gonnand, Area Sales Manager, Allison Transmission France.