SEOUL, South Korea – March, 2019 –Ajin Traffic Corp. has operated more than 60 city buses with Allison fully automatic transmissions for the past decade, roughly 60 percent of its fleet. The company, which has operated buses in Seoul for 50 years, has had such success with Allison Automatics that it now plans to incorporate only buses with fully automatic transmissions as it adds more low-floor buses into its fleet.
“In 2009, we began to introduce low-floor buses,” said Cheon Yeong-mun, General Affairs Manager of Ajin Traffic. “That’s how our full experience with Allison fully automatic transmissions began. Over the past ten years, we have had no trouble with the Allison products, which demonstrates their exceptional durability. I also want to praise their effective maintenance support system, which has been a great help to the General Affairs Department.”
Ajin Traffic Corp. started bus operation in 1969 and is now a major bus operator in South Korea’s capital. Buses are managed under a semi-public system, and the city government evaluates the bus operators every year. In the annual evaluation, Ajin always ranks high. Government regulators often ask Ajin how the company manages buses to glean insights for policy making.
“We are proud of our excellent bus maintenance and safety,” said Cheon. “Fewer incidents of idling, sudden unintended acceleration (SUA) and sudden starts translate into higher fuel efficiency and greater profits for the company. Fully automatic transmissions are by far cheaper to maintain than manual transmissions, which require replacement of components every six to ten months.”
The only maintenance that fully automatic transmissions require is periodic replacement of the oil and filter, which is simpler and cheaper than frequently replacing clutches and brakes that manual transmissions often require. Moreover, Allison Transmission’s after sales service includes regularly visits from technicians to city bus operators to confirm how well the fully automatic transmissions are functioning. Last October, Allison inspected all of Ajin’s buses with fully automatic transmissions even though no issues had been reported.
“Two other strengths of Allison products are superb safety and convenience,” said Cheon. “With Allison fully automatic transmissions, bus drivers do not have to start or stop suddenly, leaving little room for accidents inside or outside the bus. With Allison transmissions, drivers also feel less tired and find the buses more convenient to drive because they can focus more on driving without being distracted.”
“We are grateful to Ajin Traffic Corp. for being a long-time customer,” said Lee Kyoungmee, Allison Transmission Regional Manager. “The company has used Allison fully automatic transmissions for years. In keeping with the Seoul city government’s plan to ensure all buses running in the city will be low-floored by 2025, we will intensify our sales and marketing activities to ensure more city buses in Korea will benefit from Allison fully automatic transmissions.”
