H & L Charters takes delivery of MCI J4500 won during UMA Expo
The auction benefited the Motorcoach Marketing Council, with proceeds supporting the image and future of motorcoach travel in North America via Council’s GoMotorcoach campaign available to operators.
Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.’s H & L Charter took delivery of its new MCI J4500, which it won during the GoMotorcoach auction at UMA Expo in St. Louis in February.
The auction benefited the Motorcoach Marketing Council, with proceeds supporting the image and future of motorcoach travel in North America via Council’s GoMotorcoach campaign available to operators. H & L Charter also won the 2017 ABA Green Spirit Award from the American Bus Association’s Annual Meeting & Marketplace in Cleveland in the small operator category.
“We’re a third-generation company with a bright future, and proud of recent achievements,” said H & L President Jodi Merritt, part of a women-owned and family-owned business that includes her mother, Elaine Fickett. “Our customers demand clean, environmentally sound transportation and we’re very excited and proud to add MCI’s greenest ‘J’ to our fleet.”
This year the 2017 MCI J4500 unveils the latest generation of EPA 2017 clean-diesel Cummins ISX12 engine technology.
H & L Charter took delivery of its new MCI J4500 on March 15, which brings the company’s 45- and 40-foot coach fleet to 14. The coach’s features include a Tarabus wood-like floor along with the new standard enhanced Amaya GT seats that have a thinner back for more per-passenger cabin space.
Premiums remain elevated. Underwriting scrutiny is intense. And claims costs continue to rise at historic levels. Behind those numbers lies a complex mix of legal, medical, and cultural forces reshaping the commercial landscape.
The company said it has remained the most widely purchased model in the new coach market across the US and Canada, according to historical data from the Motorcoach Builders Survey conducted by the American Bus Association
A phased approach to technology, in-house capabilities, and workforce investment is helping transportation leaders break the reactive cycle and build more resilient, revenue-focused operations.
The company's flagship H3-45 is also the best-selling 45-foot motorcoach in North America, according to vehicle registration data from S&P Global Mobility (Polk).
METRO’s Executive Editor Alex Roman spoke with Mueller about the opening event, the company’s progress since launching in late 2022, and the road ahead.
METRO Executive Editor Alex Roman presented the award to the operation’s President/CEO Scott Parsons at the United Motorcoach Association’s EXPO in Birmingham, Alabama.
The new facility, spanning more than 43,000 square feet, includes pre-delivery inspection, a large repair, maintenance, and service center, an administrative building, and a dedicated training and delivery center for customers and service partners.
