Intercape


The caped cruise-aiders


Family run South African coach company Intercape has been undergoing a transformation. Gay Sutton discovers from Arend de Waal, Wynand Van Nieuwenhuizen and Corne De Waal how the company has been introducing innovative new services and practices.


The distances across southern Africa are vast, the scenery stunning and the mountain roads challenging, yet previously gruelling long distance journeys can now be achieved in luxurious comfort. Today’s traveller can board a luxury double-decker coach in Namibia, for example, and travel overnight in a spacious reclining seat, surrounded by all the comforts usually associated with business class air travel. There are none of the tedious hours of waiting at airline terminals, baggage doesn’t go mysteriously missing, pick-up and drop-off points are in city centres and you arrive refreshed.


The company behind this new and appropriately named Sleepliner service is Intercape. Based in Cape Town, South Africa, family owned Intercape has been operating in the long distance coach service sector for more than 30 years. One of the secrets of its success is the ability to identify new opportunities and implement improvements that are aimed at pleasing the customer.


Over the last decade, the company has been undergoing an evolution. “We have made significant changes to the company since 2000,” says financial director Arend de Waal. The changes include launching the Sleepliner service, developing a new ticket management system and improving company branding. Over the past four years alone, R140 million has been invested in new coaches. “We also began to formalise our corporate governance, putting a fleet replacement programme in place and focusing the business on safety, reliability and customer service.”


The Sleepliner service, launched in 2005, is a new concept in business class comfort and is based on a fleet of purpose-built coaches designed in conjunction with the Brazilian bus maker Marco Polo specifically for Intercape’s South African network. “Some of our routes are in excess of 1,500 kilometres, which is a 21 hour journey,” says technical and operations manager Wynand Van Niewenhuizen. “The coaches are designed purely for comfort and safety on long distance journeys, and since 2005, Sleepliner has developed into an exclusive market.”


The seats on these double-decker coaches come with extra leg room and foot rests, and recline to a restful 150 degrees. There is a full suite of on-board entertainment, air conditioning, toilet facilities and a kitchenette. All of this is managed by a hostess who is responsible for passenger comfort, and two drivers who operate on four hour shifts, one resting while the other is driving. To date, the Sleepliner has been introduced between major centres throughout South Africa, and between Cape Town and Windhoek in Namibia.


If the Sleepliner is Intercape’s business class service, the Mainliner is its standard luxury class. Operating over a wider range of routes that extend into Botswana, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe, Mainliner comprises comfortable double-decker coaches and standard reclining seats. The final piece in Intercape’s jigsaw is a tour and charter coach service, which is currently gearing up for the 2010 World Cup and beyond, with a new fleet of top-of-the-range Irizar PB coaches.


Safety is a top priority for Intercape, and the company has been introducing a range of protocols to formalise safe practice. In 2007, drive cams were introduced on all the coaches—so not only are the vehicles monitored by satellite tracking but the journeys are continuously recorded to improve performance, safety and efficiency. The cams have two views: they record the journey from the driver’s perspective; and they also monitor the driver’s actions and reactions, providing an invaluable insight into conditions on the road, as well as changes that could improve safety and efficiency.


Speed is acknowledged to be one of the greatest contributory factors in road accidents, and Intercape has taken steps to address this. “The speed limit in South Africa is 100 kilometres per hour, but we have introduced a 95 kilometre per hour limit on all our services, and we’ve reduced the speed limit on the mountain passes to just 45 kilometres per hour,” Niewenhuizen says.


This is not an empty regulation either—there are two checks to enforce it. Firstly, a warning buzzer automatically sounds on the coach if the driver exceeds the speed limit. Secondly, the coaches are monitored throughout their journey by a 24 hour operation room which provides emergency back-up and coordinates speedy repair services. Its operators will contact the drivers by phone if they exceed the speed limit. 


The coach fleet is the company’s primary asset, and a formal fleet replacement programme has been introduced whereby the coaches are operated for four years and then refurbished to extend their lives for another two to three years. They are kept in top condition by an extensive preventive maintenance programme which includes a full safety check at each depot stop and a full vehicle service every 20,000 kilometres. The depots, located at all major stopover points, are equipped with full workshop facilities to carry out anything from a basic service to a full engine replacement, while major depots in Pretoria and Cape Town put the coaches through regular full roadworthiness tests.


The preventive maintenance policy is paying off. “The first batch of new vehicles going through the two million kilometre check are doing so without requiring any major component replacements. So we’ve essentially doubled the life expectancy of our vehicles,” Niewenhuizen explains.


“Another contributory factor to this extended vehicle lifespan is driver behaviour,” de Waal says. “Our drivers are incentivised to drive as efficiently as possible on each trip. Bringing down the maximum speed to 95 kilometres per hour has also helped.”


People are certainly at the heart of Intercape’s business, and the company has been operating an in-house training school since 1999, delivering fully accredited training to those who deal directly with the public. The standard customer care, safety and best practice topics are all covered. “But the biggest thing we’re focusing on now is the softer skills,” explains marketing manager Corne De Waal. “For example, we offer a range of fares for each departure, so it’s important for our sales staff to have the skills to make the sale and close the deal. Our market is also very visual, meaning that word of mouth marketing is very important. So we’re focusing on sharpening the skills of our drivers and hostesses, and letting them know their importance in the whole value chain.”


Looking to the future, Arend de Waal sees significant opportunities for growth. “Statistics show that over a 12 month period, three quarters of the people visiting South Africa came from Africa itself, which means there is a huge opportunity for us.” Services are likely to be expanded further into Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.


De Waal acknowledges that the African road networks do need to be improved. “However, the roads are already much better than they were, and when they are ready in a few years’ time, we will be ready to provide the service.”