Bustrans / Silverline / Katen & Heath - Fairfield East
This is a historic listing of vehicles owned and operated by Bustrans / Silverline / Katen & Heath - Fairfield East.
| Operator Information | Full Fleet List | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accreditation: | Bustrans Pty Ltd (formerly Katen & Heath Pty Ltd), Acc No. 8272 & 11216, Fairfield |
| Depot Address/s: | 12 Normanby Street, Fairfield |
| Livery: | Red with Black stripe and White roof |
| Service Runs: | 817 Fairfield - Cabramatta 818 Fairfield - Chester Hill |
| Website: | None |
The Katen & Heath partnership purchased route 81 Fairfield - Carramar - Cabramatta and route 83 Airfield - Villawood - Chester Hill services from John A Gilbert in February 1956. On 1 November 1995, both routes were numbered into the Sydney Region Route Number System: 817 (ex 81) & 818 (ex 83). A new company, Bustrans Pty Ltd, was formed with the retirement of Alf Heath in November 1996. The route services were operated under the Bustrans umbrella, while the Silverline name remained in use for the charter operation.
Bustrans came to an abrupt end after m/o 8053 suffered a serious accident at Woodpark on 3 March 2004 with 64 children and teachers on board. The subsequent OTSI report found fhe primary cause of the accident was brake failure and this failure was directly attributable to poor maintenance. Fourteen of the eighteen vehicles in the Bustrans fleet were grounded with serious defects on 5 March 2004. (Reference: http://www.otsi.nsw.gov.au/bus/IR-Woodpark-final.pdf).
Baxter's Bus Lines (Holroyd Bus Lines Pty Ltd) assumed operation on Tuesday 6 April 2004, taking over only a handful of vehicles. Isuzu m/o 8617 operated the last Bustrans service on Monday night 5 April 2004. Baxters then sold the services to transit First (Demerton Pty Ltd), Bankstown with sixteen vehicles, including former Bustrans vehicle m/o 7317. After reorganisation of routes in September 2006, transit First sold to Veolia Transport (NSW) Pty Ltd 1/2/07.
The outside fenced parking space on Normanby St was later developed into housing, while the shed & workshop area remained a bus depot firstly for Steve�s Minibus & Tours, and more recently Good Az Gold Tours & Transfers. The Silverline name was revived by Frank Reynolds for his charter operation around 2006. Orwin�s Coaches took over Reynolds in February 2007 and assumed the Silverline trading name. This name was dropped in favour of YADA Coaches after Young Adults Disabled Association took over from Ray Orwin.
