Two iconic QOCS buses from the ’70s helped run nearly 900 passengers around at the recent Brisbane Open House event in Brisbane.
On 15 and 16 July 2023, the Queensland Omnibus & Coach Society (QOCS) partnered with the organisers of Brisbane Open House to operate free heritage shuttle buses. The buses helped move Open House attendees between venues in and around the Brisbane CBD on the weekend.
A total of 889 passengers were carried over the two days, with QOCS president Nick Wilson saying patronage numbers were up by 27 per cent compared to the previous event.
“This was a rare opportunity for the public to ride on our fleet of preserved Brisbane City Council buses and it was the third consecutive Open House event that QOCS has provided complimentary services of this kind,” Wilson told the Australasian Bus & Coach Magazine.
The services all started from Adelaide Street (Stop 21) outside City Hall and King George Square between 9.00am and 3.45pm.
The services were operated by a fleet of former Brisbane City Council buses on set routes, with Bus 721, a 1970 Leyland Panther, running the City Loop that replicates Transport for Brisbane’s clockwise free city loop.
The City Loop connected Adelaide Street, Eagle Street Pier, the Botanical Gardens and George Street, running every 30 minutes.
The second bus, Bus 827, which was a 1978 Volvo B69, ran the Herston Shuttle, operating from City Hall to this year’s Open House ‘Iconic Precinct’ at Herston Quarter next to the Royal Brisbane Hospital every 30 minutes.
This story is courtesy of the Australasian Bus & Coach Magazine with all photos supplied by QOCS.