Volvo Bus Latin America has sold 688 bus chassis to the capitol of Colombia, Bogotá, which is touted to be the company's largest deal ever in Colombia.

The deal includes chassis for 48 articulated and 97 bi-articulated vehicles that will operate the trunk lines of Transmilenio, while the remaining over 500 chassis will be used for low entry buses, operating conventional lines and feeder lines.

These are the first low floor buses to be used in Bogotá enabling access by wheelchairs to public transportation, the company said.

The new vehicles were sold for the third phase expansion of Transmilenio in Bogotá, the continent's most efficient and advanced Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)-system, which is a high-capacity bus-based urban transportation systems.

Volvo Bus Latin America president Luis Pimenta said this deal reaffirms Volvo's position as main supplier of BRT solutions in Latin America, in particular as a function of the high transportation capacity of their chassis and their low operating costs.

"The option for vehicles of this size contributes decisively to improving the quality of life in Bogotá, a metropolis that still coexists with highly congested traffic by the 16 thousand passenger transportation vans," Pimenta said.

Volvo Bus Latin America urban bus manager Euclides Castro said gradually removing this huge small capacity vehicle fleet reduces the number of traffic accidents and contributes significantly towards improving the quality of the air.