First of all, Happy New Year to my readers.
We have the first London Bus tender awards of this year. It has announced the three-door, two-staircase hybrid New Routemasters will prolong operation on route 313 as part of the new contract awarded to Arriva London.
LBSL intends to enter into new contracts for the following routes with the operators listed below:
Route |
Current Operator |
New Operator |
PVR |
Vehicles |
313 |
Arriva London North |
Arriva London North |
8 |
Existing New Routemaster |
606 |
Metroline |
Sullivan Buses |
2 |
Existing diesel double deck |
645* |
Arriva London South |
Arriva London South |
2 |
Existing diesel double deck |
* Currently numbered 405D.
The vehicles detailed above will meet Euro VI emissions standards.
The above contracts will commence on the following dates:
- 24th July 2021: Route 606.
- 30th October 2021: Route 645.
- 6th November 2021: Route 313
Talking about three-door and two-staircase buses, in Singapore the Land Transport Agency has announced deploying three-door double deck buses this year.
From Singapore’s Land Transport Agency
These buses are designed with a second staircase and an additional exit door at the rear of the bus to improve commuter flow. With an additional staircase, commuters boarding the bus will be able to access the upper deck via the first staircase while alighting commuters are encouraged to make their way down via the second staircase. The additional exit door allows commuters at the rear of the bus to alight without having to make their way to the middle of the bus.
Like all our newer buses, the three-door double-deck buses will be equipped with a passenger information display system to provide commuters with route-specific information, such as upcoming bus stops and the MRT and LRT lines near a bus stop. The buses will also have on-board audio announcements of upcoming bus stops to make commuting easier for visually-impaired commuters. The centre pole at the front door will also be removed to make boarding easier for parents with strollers. Wheelchair users will continue to board and disembark from the middle door of the bus, assisted by the bus captain deploying the ramp.
A total of 100 three-door double-deck diesel buses from two suppliers - ST Engineering Land Systems Ltd (STELS) and Alexander Dennis (Singapore) Services Pte Ltd (ADS) - will be introduced over the course of 2021. The 50 buses from STELs will be progressively deployed from the end of this month, while the buses from ADS are expected to be deployed from the second quarter.
The deployment of the three-door buses follows a successful trial in 2017 and 2018. Under the trial, Tower Transit operated a three-door double-deck bus on Service 143 from March to September 2017. SMRT Buses operated a three-door single-deck bus on Services 190 and 901 from June 2017 to January 2018. Commuters who took these buses welcomed the additional door as it made boarding and alighting easier and faster. LTA subsequently called a tender to procure 100 three-door double-deck buses in May 2018 and the tender was awarded to STELS and ADS in April 2019.
These 100 buses are the final batch of diesel public buses to be deployed on our roads. Since 2020, all public bus purchases have been cleaner energy buses, in line with our commitment towards having a 100% cleaner energy bus fleet by 2040.
It will be interesting to see if they consider ordering a three-door, two-staircase bus in full zero-emission electric or hydrogen in the near future.
From Alexander Dennis
Alexander Dennis Limited (ADL) and BYD UK jointly announced today that ADL and BYD will commence the design and assembly of chassis for the BYD ADL partnership’s electric single and double deck buses for the British market, ensuring completed vehicles are built in ADL’s facilities in the UK. ADL is a subsidiary of leading independent global bus manufacturer NFI Group Inc. (NFI), while BYD is a global leader in batteries, energy management and electric mobility.
Electric bus chassis assembly will take place in ADL’s facilities with on-the-ground support from the BYD team, and is planned to commence in the second half of 2021.
This significant step has been taken in response to the increasing demand for zero emission vehicles. It further strengthens the partnership’s market-leading position while underpinning jobs in Britain and developing skills in the growing market for clean vehicle technology.
Since it began in 2015, the partnership has gone from strength to strength, with over 500 electric buses delivered or on order. They have clocked up a combined over 16 million emission-free miles of reliable service in London as well as numerous towns and cities across the UK. More than 70% of electric buses introduced in Britain in this period were supplied by the BYD ADL partnership.
Until now, chassis for the BYD ADL Enviro200EV single deck and BYD ADL Enviro400EV double deck buses were fully built by BYD before being delivered to ADL’s facilities to have their bodywork fitted in the UK.
Frank Thorpe, Managing Director of BYD UK, said: “This news underpins the fantastic relationship we have with ADL in the UK. We have always worked closely to deliver the highest quality products and services, and we are confident that production of complete vehicles here in the UK will bring even greater efficiencies for our customers. More importantly,” he said, “this commitment from both BYD and ADL is also a reflection of the acceptance of eMobility from Local Authorities, bus operators and their passengers. Electrification in our towns and cities is gathering pace, and the BYD ADL partnership is spearheading the drive towards a more sustainable future.”
Paul Davies, President & Managing Director of ADL, commented: “I am delighted that we’re moving our electric bus partnership to this next level and building complete zero emission buses for the UK market in the UK. This ensures that investment in sustainable transport for our towns and cities delivers full economic benefits to communities right across the country.”
I personally think Alexander Dennis and BYD should develop and launch a three-door, two-staircase variant of the Enviro400EV City, this would give TfL an option to use a newer zero emission electric bus with three-doors and two-staircase once the hybrid New Routemaster finishes their 14 year life cycle.
The Enviro400EV City has finally entered service on route 174 in East London, Soon we expect the new buses to appear on route 173 which runs from King Georges Hospital to Beckton DLR Station via Dagenham Heathway Station. We expect newer vehicles (including the Optare Metrodecker EV) to appear on more bus routes in London later this year.
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