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First new bus for London ‘production vehicles’ leave the factory

Posted: 12 April 2013 | Transport for London (TfL) | No comments yet

A production line set up to manufacture a fleet of the Mayor’s new buses for London has despatched its first completed buses…

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A production line set up to manufacture a fleet of the Mayor’s new buses for London has despatched its first completed buses to the capital. The first two buses have left the Wrightbus factory in Northern Ireland, these will be followed by another four next week and a further 594 over the next three years. When they arrive in London the buses will initially be used for driver training and familiarisation.

The route 24, which Metroline operates between Pimlico and Hampstead Heath, will become the first bus route to operate exclusively with new bus for London vehicles from Saturday 22 June.

Transport for London (TfL) has also confirmed today that independent emission testing of a prototype vehicle has shown that this is the cleanest and greenest bus of its type anywhere in the world.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: “I am delighted that our first gleaming new buses have driven off the production line, through the gates of Wrightbus and are now London-bound. These fabulous machines meld the very best in design, engineering and green engine technology. I believe they will be hugely popular with passengers and they will be joined by hundreds more of their brethren in the coming years.”

Previous emission testing involved an Engineering Test Vehicle. The latest results are from a vehicle that has been in passenger service for eight months and that has driven more than 15,000 miles. In tests the bus emitted:

  • 2.048g/km of NOx – this is around four times less than the fleet average for hybrid buses (7.7g/km) and diesel buses (9.3g/km).
  • 690.23g/km of CO2 – which is better than the fleet average for hybrid (864g/km) and is almost half the fleet average for diesel buses (1295g/km).
  • 0.012g/km of PM – which is four times less than the fleet average for hybrid and diesel buses – which emit 0.048g/km of PM.

Financial approval to order 600 new bus for London vehicles was given by the TfL Board in September last year. The buses will be delivered in batches over the next three years. The order represents the largest order of hybrid buses ever placed in Europe and will deliver significant environmental benefits – reducing CO2 emissions in the capital by almost 20,000 tonnes a year.

Many components of the new bus, including engines, chassis, superstructure and seats, are manufactured in the UK. The order of components from companies across the UK will also further stimulate the economy.

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