BRITISH Gas Services has ordered 565 Ford Transit vans for delivery this year. The Transits are the first to join the organisation's fleet for three years and are replacement vans for a nationwide team of engineers. All the vans will be leased and will cover an average 50,000-55,000 miles while on the fleet, which includes about 1,500 Transit-sized panel vans.

The Transits, a mix of 120 and 190 models, are equipped with purpose-built internal racking designed after consultation with engineers. The short wheelbase Transit 120 vans will have a standard roof and 70PS version of Ford's 2.5-litre diesel engine. The 190s will be high roof models with 76PS versions of the engine.