Wednesday 16 November 2016

Scania Coach away to Bus Hospital

Our Scania Coach was recovered today to be taken to Westons to have a new engine installed. 


This is our 55 seater coach, this is a well used vehicle within our Fleet so we thought it is well worth the money to repair this coach rather than replace it. It is out on the road regular on Football Hires, Weddings and Airport transfers. We hope to have our vehicle back and in full operation within the next 7 days. 

Once we get our Scania Coach back it will be like a new vehicle and ready to be put back in to our fleet of minibuses and coaches to serve our customers. 


Monday 14 November 2016

What's important to you when booking a minibus or Coach?

We understand how frustrating it can be when booking transport may it be a minibus a coach or even a car. In this blog I hope to reach out to our current and potential customers to get some feedback about what the problems might be for a person trying to book transport may it be for a private hire, wedding transport or a sporting event.




A1 Coaches have 37 years experience in the transport industry but as a company we try our hardest to listen to what our customers are telling us and ensure our customers gain trust in us as a company, you can only do this if you listen. Listening is something that we are very good at. 

Maybe these are some of the questions that may run through your mind when you are booking a minibus or a coach: 

  • Is this the cheapest price I can find?
  • Is this good value for money?
  • Can I trust this operator?
  • Will our driver hold the proper license?
  • Is this a reputable company?
  • Will the company return back for us once they have dropped us off?
These may just be a handful of questions that might run through your head, trying to find the answers to these questions can be very frustrating and we as a company understand this. 

We are asking all our customers and potential customers to tell us what their man concerns/problems are when trying to book a minibus or a coach for a special occasion or event. We are always re visiting our systems and proceedures according to what's working and what is needing a little more attention. One of our many moto's is "There is always room for improvement"! Infact, people often tell me I should have this engraved on my headstone!! 

A1 Coaches have a dedicated Sales team who are ready to answer any questions you may have about enquiring or booking transport. 



Drop us a comment here or send us an email to info@a1coaches.com or call our office on 01592 713443. Were here to help! 

Bus and Coach 2016 Dublin

Both myself and my Dad attended Coach and Bus in Dublin on Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th November. Attending Bus and Coach show 2016 was a great pleasure, both days were very good, It was really nice to meet other Scottish Minibus and Coach Operators and have some lengthy conversation about the Bus and Coach industry, some of course over a Guinness or 2!!.

We were lucky enough to travel courtesy of Coach Traders and Paramount conversions all expenses were paid including flight, accommodation and gala dinner held on Saturday evening. Huge, Massive thank you to Gordon from Coach Traders for organising and footing the bill for this trip.






Each year I would normally attend Bus and Coach live in Birmingham but I have never had the pleasure to attend Dublin until 2016. I always try and make sure I manage to one of the days in Birmingham as I am always scared in case we miss out on something new to the industry. It was lovely to attend the Dublin show for a wee change! 

The hotel we stayed in was called The Clayton Hotel, It was lovely and very comfortable, I was extremely lucky to get a room to myself so it was nice to have some chill out time after arrival before we headed to the Bus and Coach show and I never had to put up with my Dad's snoring!! ;)

The Clayton Hotel, Dublin





The Clayton hotel was only 2 minutes walk away, so that was very convenient. We headed off to the show around 1pm on the Saturday to get some insight on what Bus and Coach 2016 had to offer. Dublin Bus and Coach is not as big as Birmingham but I would say it was pretty much around the same information on the same products, just not as many suppliers but they all pretty much are promoting the same things on a smaller scale. I thought the people were very friendly and welcoming. 

The Showroom of Bus and Coach 2016


Interior of a wheelchair accessible minibus 

David having a demonstration of a ride on cleaner! 



On the Saturday evening after the show we headed to the CTTC Gala dinner which was held at Ballsbridge Hotel. The Ballroom where the Gala dinner was held was beautifully presented, the food was lovely and we were sat next to some awesome people who were of course Minibus and Coach Operators so we all had plenty to talk about. Again, this was a lovely touch to Coach and Bus 2016. 

Gala Dinner Ballroom 

Colleen and David at CTTC Gala Dinner

Overall the weekend was lovely, It was a perfect opportunity to be away from the norm especially some valuable time with my Dad. Our conversation was of course all very bus and coach but we certainly came up with some new business ideas that we maybe able to implement throughout A1 Minibus and Coach Services LTD. 

I would like to say a massive heartfelt thank you to Coach Traders and Paramount conversions for making this weekend possible and of course very very hospitable. 

Thank you from David and Colleen of A1 Minibus and Coach Services LTD.