Transport for Greater Manchester has ordered 50 zero-emission double decker electric buses from Alexander Dennis Limited (ADL).
The zero-emission buses will enter service in the first phase of the city’s franchised Bee Network, which will launch in September 2023.
The electric buses will be built in Britain at Alexander Dennis’s factory in Scarborough. They are due to operate in Wigan and Bolton ahead of the Bee Network being rolled out in other parts of Greater Manchester in 2024 and 2025.
Alexander Dennis President & Managing Director, Paul Davies, said:We are delighted to have been chosen by Transport for Greater Manchester as supplier for the first tranche of zero-emission buses for the new Bee Network. We look forward to playing our part in transforming bus services in Wigan and Bolton with these iconic buses, which will be built in the North of England at our factory in Scarborough.
These ADL electric buses will be the first to bear the branding of the new Bee Network: Greater Manchester’s ambition for a fully integrated, London-style transport network consisting of buses, trams, walking and cycling, and eventually trains.
Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said:The countdown to bringing buses back under local control for the first time in 36 years is well and truly on. With the order placed for our first 50 new electric buses and strong interest from operators who want to run the first franchised services a year from now, the Bee Network is gathering real momentum.
The 50 new buses will be funded from the government’s City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement, with around 300 more electric buses to be delivered from 2024 to 2027.
