Mercedes-Benz Buses and Coaches said it has received a major contract from SAPTCO (Saudi Arabian Public Transport) for 300 Travego coaches. The first 150 vehicles will be delivered before the end of this year, with the balance to be in service by early 2009. This is SAPTCO's first Travego order, the Stuttgart-based division of Daimler noted. Among other duties, these two-axle coaches will reportedly be used for journeys between pilgrimage cities in the Kingdom. The transport operator is the country's largest buyer of buses and has a total fleet of 2,500 vehicles, more than half of which are Mercedes-Benzes. The 300 coaches will all be powered by 416hp (310kW) specification Mercedes-Benz OM 457 LA diesel engines. Other specifics for this order include an uprated air conditioning system, with a 39kW cooling capacity, the OEM said.
