Go North East and Newport Transport have placed the first UK orders for Yutong electric single-deckers, for nine and 15 vehicles respectively.
Go North East is taking the 10.8m E10 for the QuayLink service between Newcastle and Gateshead, with the Chinese manufacturer’s UK agent, Pelican Bus & Coach, due to deliver them for a launch into service in July 2020. They will be truly zero-emission, with electric air conditioning.
Go North East and transport executive Nexus secured £1.66million Ultra Low Emission Bus Scheme (ULEBS) funding for their purchase, with £450,000 of that for overnight charging equipment at the Riverside depot in Gateshead.
Colin Barnes, Go North East’s engineering director, says: ‘We’ve undertaken extensive trials and analysis of the electric bus types that are currently available in the UK market. The distance range of the vehicles, battery life, seating capacity, build quality and warranty were particularly important considerations for us when evaluating the best choice and Yutong came top in all these areas. We’ve tried both the E10 and E12 models in our operation and have been very impressed with them.’
Council-owned Newport Transport is taking the 12m Yutong E12. It secured…
