Adelaide Metro
Adelaide Metro
On the 23rd of April 2000, bus, train, and tram services were rebranded and brought under a single entity, Adelaide Metro. This changed all public timetables, bus stops, and branding, including bus and train liveries (later this would included trams, but vintage “H Type” 1929 trams in service at the time retained their vintage tuscan livery). This new livery was created from the South Australian state colours, red, yellow, and blue. The livery consists of a yellow front, with red stripes on the side at a 57 degree angle, surrounding a blue triangle around the wheel. The livery first appeared in 2000, and was last used in 2011. MAN NL202, MAN 11.190, MAN SG280H, MAN SL200, MAN SL202, Volvo B58/B10M, Mercedes O305/G, Scania L94UB, and Scania K series buses all featured in this livery. Various “one off” purchases made by private operators contracted to run Adelaide Metro services during this time also featured in this livery. “2000” and “3000” class trains were also painted in this livery, as well as Flexity Classic trams. This level of livery uniformity had not been seen in Adelaide since the “silver” days of the MTT and STA, and cemented the idea of a single, uniform service to the public. Currently, BPASA member-owned buses 199, 1321, 1324, 1325, 1347, 1352, 1539, 1549, 1948, and 1966 are in this livery, however many of these have plans in the pipeline to be re-painted into previous liveries.
Adelaide Free
In late 2000, the newly formed Adelaide Metro decided to create a new and updated identity for the free CBD loop services (The 99B “Bee Line'“ and 99C “City Loop”).
Part of this new identity was to put brand new, clean and modern looking buses on the services, and have onboard entertainment showing off the many things you could do in the CBD.
Adelaide Metro asked that the final 11 MAN NL202 CNG’s (#1750-60) delivered have a different seating arrangement at the back for increased capacity and be fitted with the more modern CB62A front.
Then all but one of these buses would be placed in permanent Adelaide Free service and receive one of three new liveries to promote different aspects of Adelaide’s culture/drawcards.
These were; “Adelaide the Green City” (#1752, 1756, 1758, 1759), “Adelaide Food & Wine” (#1750, 1753, 1754) and “Adelaide Arts & Education” (#1751, 1755, 1757). 1760 remained in the regular Adelaide Metro livery.
As the livery began to fade over the next decade, they were slowly phased off dedicated service on the Adelaide Free loops and later entirely removed when in 2014 the services were rebranded to “Free City Connector”. This new branding coincided with a more modern fleet of buses entering service on the new loop services, as they are today (2021).
This livery survived on some units up until 2017 when they were all repainted into the standard Adelaide Metro yellow.