It might not be easy for an inexperienced group of travelers to choose one out of several charter bus hire companies when looking to go on a road trip around New South Wales.
This article discusses three things that travelers should ask for before choosing one company over the others for their much anticipated trip.
Operator Accreditation Certificates
This is one of the most important things to ask for from a charter bus hire company. The law in New South Wales requires charter bus hire companies to be registered with and accredited by the Ministry of Transport.
An operator accreditation certificate is evidence that the company will provide a charter bus that has passed the necessary safety inspections and that the company is permitted to offer charter bus services within this jurisdiction.
Closely related to this is the fact that charter bus companies are also required to ensure that all their bus operators have a Driver Authority Card that indicates that the bus operators are adequately trained and competent. The Director General in the Ministry of Transport (Tim Reardon in today's NSW) is responsible for the issuance of driver authority cards. Don't hesitate to drop any charter bus company that fails to produce evidence of their accreditation and evidence that their drivers are authorized.
Safety Inspection Reports
Although the operator's accreditation certificate will only be issued after safety inspections have been undertaken on charter buses, it's still a good idea to ask a charter bus company for their safety inspection records.
Once an accreditation certificate has been issued, charter bus companies are required to ensure that all their buses/coaches go for subsequent inspections (often on a bi-annual basis). For this reason, charter bus hire companies that have been in business for a long time should be in a position to prove that they have been complaint with the requirement described above. The best proof of such compliance is in the safety inspection report issued to charter bus hire companies after each inspection.
Park Licenses
It's highly likely that groups of travelers will stop over at one (or several) of the National Parks in NSW during their expedition.
The law in New South Wales requires that charter bus operators who usually take groups of travelers to different national parks need to have a relevant license from the National Parks and Wildlife Service. Confirm this before you make payments for charter bus hire services or you may find yourself locked out of NSW national parks during your expedition.
