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Excursions - Events - Exhibitions
Currently under restoration, but can be booked for events and exhibitions
The story behind the bus
As one of the skippers of the solar-powered electric boat "dGrandfey", which operates as an excursion boat on Lake Schiffenen, I inform passengers about the sights during the trip from Schiffenen Camping to Fribourg Neigles and vice versa.
The Petit-Vivy castle, which towers over Lake Schiffenen, is also one of the sights.
To find out more about the castle, I visited the private property on which the castle is located at the beginning of October 2022. I discovered the former Greyhound bus.
It was immediately clear to me that this gem should be made drivable again.
The bus was registered in the canton of Zurich from 2011, so it was already CH-approved at the time. It was used as an exhibition bus to publicize the "Wooster" product label. Link.
From fall 2016 to spring 2023, it stood unused for almost 7 years in Petit Vivy (FR) on Lake Schiffenen.
On January 3, 2023, I was given the go-ahead to take over the bus to restore it and get it back on the road. Many thanks to Philippe Burger, the owner of Petit Vivy Castle, for the donation.
The business idea
Originally, it had to be assumed that the engine was no longer operational.
The idea was therefore to make the bus environmentally friendly and therefore equip it with a hydrogen engine. Should this not be possible, the use of an electric motor would have to be examined.
It quickly became apparent that the original engine, although 75 years old, still worked, so it made sense to keep it. The bus retains its original heart, supplemented with an electric motor. This means that it can be driven with a combustion engine or an electric motor, depending on the customer's preference.
The bus would be used for excursions on the one hand and as an "exhibition bus" and bus for events of all kinds on the other. Find out more here.
To this end, some rows of seats would be sacrificed in favor of a "reception lounge" at the entrance.
The remaining 30 or so seats should be mounted on rows of seats that can be easily removed so that the bus can be used as an exhibition space.
The exterior decor should match the original decor again. I.e. with the Greyhound and the lettering Greyhound Lines, or new Greyhoundbus.ch. The implementation took place on 11.7.23
I am 100% convinced that the restored bus will be well received and will also be a good investment for the sponsors. The "Greyhoundbus.ch" association was founded for this purpose.
Click here for the history of the Geyhound bus.
Who is behind the project?
Thomas Aebischer from Murten, born in 1964. Has worked at SBB for 42 years, most recently 25 years in Human Resources management. Can be reached at thomas.aebischer@greyhoundbus.ch.
He also works as a photographer (www.derfotomacher.ch).
The bus is transferred to the "Greyhoundbus.ch" association.