Add-On Digibus Phantom Omsi2

The Phantom is based on the Optare Spectra version that first appeared on British roads in 1992 and is a modern evolution of the MCW Metrobus. Optare, formally part of United Bus (including DAF and BOVA), acquired the 15-year-old design rights from Metro Cammell Weymann’s defunct business. The Spectra was sold exclusively on the DAF DB250RS chassis until around 1994, after which it was available to other automakers such as Alexander and Northern County.

This project was relaunched in 1998 as the first low-floor bus in the UK, the DB250RS LF. It was sold in bulk to regular customers such as Arriva, Reading Buses and Wilts & Dorset. Production continued until the last samples rolled off the assembly line in 2005. Today, most of the Spectra have been removed from public service (as emission regulations have become stricter as many cities have adopted low-emission zones), although a few lucky ones have been rescued from the landfill by passionate enthusiasts and will continue their lives intact for years.