The double-decker buses have enriched the Altamura-based company's fleet, which serves Italy and leading European towns.

TORINO, Italy, March 2024 – MarinoBus recently acquired 50 Van Hool TDX27 Astromega buses equipped with Allison fully automatic transmissions. The first buses arrived in late 2022, and final deliveries were received last summer. The fleet now has a total of 110 buses, 50 of which are fitted with Allison transmissions.

MarinoBus, which has been operating out of Altamura (Bari) since 1957, is a successful family-run business that has grown to become a major player in Italy. From its first lines in the Basilicata and Apulia area, the company now operates an important network of bus lines that run from Basilicata and Apulia to cities in central and northern Italy in addition to some of Europe's most important cities such as Luxembourg and Stuttgart. MarinoBus serves two hundred destinations and more than six thousand connections. The transition to fully automatic double-decker buses is part of the company's philosophy of providing customers with maximum comfort and service.

"The TDX27 Astromega buses with Allison automatic transmissions are easy to drive and very maneuverable, as well as extremely quiet," said Giuseppe Carone, Workshop Manager, MarinoBus. “There are none of the jolts and jerks typical of manual gear changes, and passengers ride much more comfortably. In addition, from a workshop maintenance point of view, not having to do anything except change fluid and filters is a great thing in terms of time and expense."

The new double-decker buses are used in domestic routes, with an average monthly mileage of about 13,000 kilometers and in some cases total distances of up to 200,000 kilometers per year. "The routes we run require journeys of several hours crossing roads and landscapes that are also very different from each other," said Carone. "Under these conditions the Allison automatic transmission allows acceleration and deceleration with gear changes without power interruptions, adapting easily to each route."

"These vehicles are very comfortable to drive, and you immediately notice the advantages over vehicles with semi-automatic transmissions,” said Giovanni Tragni, Driver, MarinoBus. “In addition, even with such long distances, they have always ensured exceptional reliability, with no unforeseen incidents that could have caused inconvenience to our company and passengers."

"Thanks to the Allison automatic transmission, they don't even notice changes in speed, to the point that they continue to sleep even when the vehicle stops and starts again during the trip," said Tragni. “Drivers also appreciate the ease of maneuvering at low speeds and in confined spaces, which greatly reduces driving fatigue.”

"Thanks to the automatics, operating costs have been greatly reduced. In fact over the years we have carried out almost exclusively routine maintenance, among other things avoiding long and costly downtime,” said Carone. "In the new Van Hool buses with Allison transmissions, fuel consumption has been further reduced thanks to a gear ratio that keeps the engine at a lower speed than other vehicles in the fleet at the same cruising speed. While both sets of buses have the same engine and chassis, lower fuel consumption was found with an Allison than with the semi-automatic transmission."

"The choice of the Allison transmission fits perfectly with the needs of an entrepreneurial business like MarinoBus, which has transformed the difficulties of transportation on a national scale into a service that is efficient, economical and comfortable at the same time, setting a new standard for so many travelers,” said Simone Pace, Area Sales Manager, Italy, at Allison Transmission. “The Allison automatic transmission contributes to these results thanks to its extreme ease of driving, which translates into minimal effort for drivers and maximum safety for all passengers. In addition, the reliability of these automatic transmissions allows fleets like MarinoBus to avoid unscheduled stops and costly repairs."

Van Hool's 14-meter TDX27 Astromega

Van Hool's 14-meter TDX27 Astromega, launched at Busworld in late 2016, continues to receive much acclaim. Equipped with a 530-horsepower DAF engine, the coach is equipped with an Allison Torqmatic® Series transmission designed for simple and efficient operations. The T525R transmission has six forward gears and a reverse gear equipped with 5th generation electronic controls for improved performance and diagnostic and prognostic functions. An integral output retarder that allows the vehicle to come to a gradual stop and slows brake wear is also available.

"The TDX27 Astromega’s electronics contain the ultimate in fuel economy technology from Allison. In particular, the FuelSense® sofware package optimizes the vehicle's fuel consumption under any working condition, both according to its load and the road traveled,” said Meltem Darakci, OEM Account Manager at Allison Transmission. “The automatic transmission, by virtue of its powershift nature, ensures a continuous flow of power between the engine and driveline, even during gear changes, and thus enables efficient fuel use."

"Van Hool's double-decker coach allows for optimal travel granting wide spaces to all passengers,” said Frank Donato, After-Sales Director of Van Hool Italy. “The Allison transmission makes it even quieter, minimizing the vibrations felt when maximum torque is required from the engine."

"From the beginning, our first goal has been complete customer satisfaction and the achievement of superior quality. Our company values efficiency, reliability and hospitality, and our commitment to those values is renewed day after day,” said Carone. “The choice of the new Astromega with Allison transmissions is part of this philosophy to offer our customers only the best."

About Allison Transmission
Allison Transmission (NYSE: ALSN) is a leading designer and manufacturer of vehicle propulsion solutions for commercial and defense vehicles, the largest global manufacturer of medium- and heavy-duty fully automatic transmissions, and a leader in electrified propulsion systems that Improve the Way the World Works. Allison products are used in a wide variety of applications, including on-highway trucks (distribution, refuse, construction, fire and emergency), buses (school, transit and coach), motorhomes, off-highway vehicles and equipment (energy, mining and construction applications) and defense vehicles (tactical wheeled and tracked). Founded in 1915, the company is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. With a presence in more than 150 countries, Allison has regional headquarters in the Netherlands, China and Brazil, manufacturing facilities in the USA, Hungary and India, as well as global engineering resources, including electrification engineering centers in Indianapolis, Indiana, Auburn Hills, Michigan and London in the United Kingdom. Allison also has approximately 1,600 independent distributor and dealer locations worldwide. For more information, visit allisontransmission.com.