Bravodirect

Bravodirect is a public transport brand for a network of high-quality bus connections in the province of North Brabant, the Netherlands. It is part of the broader Bravo brand used for public transport in the province. The network consists of bus lines that connect various Brabant towns and cities, offering faster journeys, frequent service, and good connections to other buses and trains. On board, Bravodirect buses provide extra comfort with comfortable seats, WiFi, and USB ports for charging smartphones and other devices. Regular public transport tickets and special day tickets are valid on Bravodirect services. The brand has its origins in the Volans network, which started in January 2008 when Veolia Transport Nederland operated three lines between Etten-Leur and Breda station under the name Volans. These lines partly used dedicated bus lanes and had priority at traffic lights, ensuring faster connections. In the context of the HOV (high-quality public transport) project in Brabant, the province designated the area as a pilot and signed a cooperation agreement with the municipalities of Etten-Leur, Oosterhout, and Breda. The province was the commissioning authority, while the municipalities managed stops and roads, and Veolia Transport provided the timetable and fleet. Special Berkhof Ambassador 200 buses were used, featuring more space for buggies, wheelchairs, and luggage, full air conditioning, and camera surveillance. With the West-Brabant and East-Brabant concessions starting in December 2014, the province required express bus lines to be converted to Volans lines as part of the BrabantStad public transport network cooperation. From 14 December 2014, Arriva operated all existing Volans lines in both concessions, using Volvo 8900 buses equipped with comfortable seats, WiFi, more legroom, individually adjustable air conditioning, USB connections, and a distinct livery. Since December 2016, Hermes has operated the Southeast Brabant concession under the name Bravo, and all express lines were also brought under this name. In 2017, Arriva followed by operating its lines under the Bravo name, except for the Volans lines and the Brabantliner. In 2018, it was decided to adopt a uniform livery and name for all express buses, except the Brabantliner, leading to the Bravodirect brand. Today, Bravodirect encompasses around 30 bus lines in North Brabant. The network includes lines in West-Brabant, such as line 370 (Geertruidenberg – Breda – Etten-Leur), line 371 (Tilburg – Oosterhout – Breda – Etten-Leur), line 372 (Oosterhout – Vrachelen – Breda Centraal Station – Breda Bijster), line 373 (Zevenbergen – Breda Centraal Station), line 374 (Made – Breda – Zundert), line 375 (Baarle-Nassau – Breda Centraal Station), and line 380 (Geertruidenberg – Breda – Oud Gastel). In East-Brabant, lines include 300 and 301 (Tilburg via Waalwijk – 's-Hertogenbosch) and 305 (Oss via Uden – Eindhoven). From 6 July 2025, a new bus timetable takes effect in West-Brabant, changing routes, times, and line numbers, including the Bravodirect network. Timetables are available on the Arriva website. Customer service for bus transport in West and East Brabant is handled by Arriva, while Southeast Brabant is handled by Hermes.

Bravodirect is a network of high-quality bus connections in the province of North Brabant, the Netherlands. The network consists of bus lines that connect various Brabant towns and cities. Regular public transport tickets and special day tickets are valid on Bravodirect buses. From January 2008 to the summer of 2018, this public transport brand was called Volans. Since January 2008, Veolia Transport Nederland operated three lines between the center of Etten-Leur and Breda station under the name Volans. These Volans lines partly ran on a dedicated bus lane and had priority at traffic lights over other traffic, ensuring a faster connection. At the end of the line, the buses continued as "normal" regional buses. As part of the HOV project in all of Brabant, the province designated the area as a pilot area and signed a cooperation agreement with the municipalities of Etten-Leur, Oosterhout, and Breda. The province was the commissioning authority, and the municipalities managed the stops and the road network. Veolia Transport provided the timetable and the fleet. For Volans, a number of 12-meter buses were made available with their own livery, in accordance with the requirements of the province of North Brabant. Veolia Transport used special Berkhof Ambassador 200 buses (series 5323-5342) for these lines. All buses had more space for buggies, wheelchairs, and luggage compared to Veolia's normal buses, and full air conditioning (driver and passengers) was present. The buses also had camera surveillance. With the West-Brabant and East-Brabant concessions starting in December 2014, the province required that the express service lines be converted to Volans lines. This was in the context of the BrabantStad public transport network cooperation, consisting of a complete package of measures to further stimulate public transport in the province. The cooperation consisted of the province of North Brabant and the five major Brabant cities: Breda, Tilburg, Eindhoven, Roosendaal, and 's-Hertogenbosch. From 14 December 2014, Arriva operated all existing Volans lines in both concessions. For this, Arriva deployed Volvo 8900 buses equipped with comfortable seats, WiFi, more legroom, individually adjustable air conditioning, a USB connection, and a distinct livery. Since December 2016, Hermes has operated the Southeast Brabant concession. The province had required that the company start operating under the name Bravo. All express service lines would therefore also operate under this name. In 2017, Arriva followed by also operating their lines under the name Bravo, with the exception of the Volans lines and the Brabantliner. As a result, the express service lines operated under three different names. In 2018, it was decided to adopt a uniform livery and name for all express buses, with the exception of the Brabantliner. This led to the creation of the Bravodirect brand. Currently, a total of 30 bus lines in the province of North Brabant fall under the name Bravodirect. The network includes lines in West-Brabant, such as line 370 (Geertruidenberg – Breda – Etten-Leur), line 371 (Tilburg – Oosterhout – Breda – Etten-Leur), line 372 (Oosterhout – Vrachelen – Breda Centraal Station – Breda Bijster), line 373 (Zevenbergen – Breda Centraal Station), line 374 (Made – Breda – Zundert), line 375 (Baarle-Nassau – Breda Centraal Station), and line 380 (Geertruidenberg – Breda – Oud Gastel). In East-Brabant, lines include 300 and 301 (Tilburg via Waalwijk – 's-Hertogenbosch) and 305 (Oss via Uden – Eindhoven). From 6 July 2025, a new bus timetable takes effect in West-Brabant, changing routes, times, and line numbers, including the Bravodirect network. The timetable for all Bravodirect lines can be found on the Arriva website. Customer service for bus transport in West and East Brabant is handled by Arriva, while Southeast Brabant is handled by Hermes.

• 2025

  New bus timetable in West-Brabant changes routes, times, and line numbers, including Bravodirect network.

• 2018

  Decision to adopt uniform livery and name Bravodirect for all express buses except Brabantliner.

• 2017

  Arriva also began operating its lines under the Bravo name, except Volans lines and Brabantliner.

• 2016

  Hermes began operating Southeast Brabant concession under the Bravo name, including express lines.

• 2014

  Arriva took over all Volans lines in West and East Brabant concessions, deploying Volvo 8900 buses with WiFi and USB.

• 2008

  Volans network launched by Veolia Transport Nederland with three lines between Etten-Leur and Breda station.

High-quality, fast, frequent and comfortable bus network in North Brabant

• Bravodirect bus lines

  High-quality bus connections with WiFi, USB charging, and comfortable seats.

1. 1Bravodirect | Bravobravo.info
2. 2Customer services | Bravobravo.info
3. 3Bravodirect - Wikidatawikidata.org
4. 4Bravodirect - Wikipedianl.wikipedia.org