SEOUL, July 10, 2024 – Allison Transmission, a leading designer and manufacturer of conventional and electrified vehicle propulsion solutions and the largest global manufacturer of medium- and heavy-duty fully automatic transmissions for commercial and defense vehicles, today announced that Dongju Transportation, a Busan town bus company, recently purchased an additional Hyundai County automatic vehicle city bus.

Dongju Transportation, which operates two city bus routes in the Sasang-gu area of Busan, purchased a Hyundai County equipped with an Allison fully automatic transmission in 2022, the first town bus in Busan.

After purchasing its initial Allison-equipped County automatic bus, the company purchased two additional Hyundai County vehicles equipped with Allison Automatics thanks to its satisfaction with its level of convenience, durability, efficiency and productivity. Building on this positive experience, Dongju Transportation has now purchased a fourth Allison-equipped Hyundai County.

"City buses are mainly used by the elderly, and unexpected stop-and-go movement can cause major incidents such as falling," said Kang Jae-geun, CEO of Dongju Transportation. "The automatic town bus equipped with Allison Automatics allows for a smooth start and a comfortable ride, greatly reducing indoor safety accidents."

City bus drivers typically cover hundreds of kilometers a day. Dongju Transportation operates two routes covering over 150 kilometers that start from 6 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. Naturally, driver fatigue is also a major operational concern from the company’s perspective considering the steep hills and narrow roads of Busan's city bus routes.

"Our employees are highly satisfied with Allison-equipped fully automatic buses,” said Kang. "Since they don't have to shift gears or operate the clutch, they experience less fatigue even after driving hundreds of kilometers a day.”

"In my personal opinion, the fuel efficiency of manual vehicles seems to be much higher in summer than in winter," Kang said, "However, automatic vehicle expenses don’t occur a big difference in fuel efficiency between winter and summer, meaning they can maintain convenient operation continuously. Also, a manual bus needs to have its manual clutch serviced and parts replaced once a year, while an automatic doesn’t."

For these reasons, many bus companies are seeking to purchase vehicles equipped with Allison fully automatic transmissions in the city bus market. The Hyundai County equipped with the Allison T1000 xFE™ transmission is a leading choice.

"Dongju Transportation's decision to further invest in Allison-equipped vehicles is a testament to the proven advantages of fully automatic transmissions in city bus operations,” said Kyoungmee Lee, Regional Director of Allison Transmission Korea. "More and more city bus companies are choosing Allison, recognizing the improved passenger experience, vehicle performance and lower total cost of ownership that comes with our products."