February decline in bus and coach market

Figures from the SMMT show that the UK bus and coach market fell 12.1 per cent in February to 356 units. The purpose-built sector dropped 44.4per cent in the month, down 18.6 per cent for the year-to-date. However, the converted bus market picked up, rising 31.2 per cent in February.

“On a rolling-year basis, performance has been gradually improving since mid-2013,” said Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive. “February registrations were down, primarily due to a decline in the purpose-built bus and coach sector. However, having begun 2014 slowly, converted buses picked up the pace in February, rising 6.7 per cent for the year-to-date to 431 units and the forthcoming plate change in March should help improve overall performance.”