Coventry electric buses

[BK63 YWP]

I think 5409 answers you question, freshly painted in Crimson, as will 733, 862, 1808, 1809 be along with any others currently picked to go to Walsall.

Is it Andy Streets dream to have one livery for all like London?

[ayyHugo]

Will diamond/banga/Travel Express and other smaller companies have to adhere to the WMB livery

I'm pretty sure all operators will be repainting their fleets to fit the WMB livery. Diamond have already repainted 32307 & 32308, WCT have already repainted SJ70HVX to name a few. Not sure about 'special' services such as the Green Bus however.

Is it Andy Streets dream to have one livery for all like London?

Looks like it is, very similar to London actually in regards to the red and grey colour scheme. https://www.tfwm.org.uk/news/a-brand-for-the-west-midlands-tfwm-reveals-new-public-transport-identity/

[Gareth]

Why does everyone always assume and think of London whenever they see a red bus. There were far more red buses in the Midlands than blue and cream!

[bususer28]

Has the government set out how long cities have to replace their fleets because people are making it out like it's going to be a quick process?

[DJ]

I'm pretty sure all operators will be repainting their fleets to fit the WMB livery. Diamond have already repainted 32307 & 32308, WCT have already repainted SJ70HVX to name a few. Not sure about 'special' services such as the Green Bus however.Looks like it is, very similar to London actually in regards to the red and grey colour scheme. https://www.tfwm.org.uk/news/a-brand-for-the-west-midlands-tfwm-reveals-new-public-transport-identity/

The only ones repainted at Diamond are for the WMB joint routes, 32307 and 32308 were for the 40 early last year, with NXWM being the same. WCT are the only operator thus far to repaint vehicles into the WMB livery for standard routes. I'm sure if other local operators wanted to use the livery, TfWM would allow them to, but I can't see the majority of operators doing so, and giving up their own brand, without it being forced on them by TfWM.

[Tony]

Has the government set out how long cities have to replace their fleets because people are making it out like it's going to be a quick process?

Coventry is 'by2025'

[paulb1973]

Coventry is 'by2025'

Probably around 30-35 new buses each year, quite a lot then.

[Sandy Lane]

Now that the electrics have settled in do they last all day on one charge or do they need a topup ?

[JoNi]

Now that the electrics have settled in do they last all day on one charge or do they need a topup ?

The electric buses don't run all day. The three buses that run to end of service are scheduled to be replaced by fossil fuelled buses in early evening by dead running to and from University Hospital.
I get seemingly daily texts from friend who lives at Wainbody usually in early afternoon saying something like "Fossil fuelled platinum just passed the house"
This thread would soon fill up if I posted them all here, I can if you want me to!

[Sandy Lane]

Thks.

[JoNi]

Thks.

Something that might interest you is the "this bus terminates here announcement" is rarely heard as it has long been the convention in Coventry to change the destination at the penultimate stop as there are few set down stops at terminals like London and it avoids confusion by having the destination already set or not in service if running off dead when the bus pulls up at what is the first stop on the next journey.

[MW]

The electric buses don't run all day. The three buses that run to end of service are scheduled to be replaced by fossil fuelled buses in early evening by dead running to and from University Hospital.
I get seemingly daily texts from friend who lives at Wainbody usually in early afternoon saying something like "Fossil fuelled platinum just passed the house"
This thread would soon fill up if I posted them all here, I can if you want me to!

Same with YW on the 6 I'd imagine. Towards the end of service, you see more and more diesel E400MMC.

We have a similar story down here in Bristol, albeit with Gas buses. Since the 25% reduction in service nationally, First Bristol have not only cut down frequency, but are using less running boards resulting in buses out of the depot for longer periods (I.e 6AM till midnight). This means buses are out for longer, doing more mileage and every day around 8PM, buses are being changed over at relief points and passengers being transferred simply because of them running out of fuel!

The difference being that to fill a Gas bus takes what, a minute or two? Electric charging obviously taking much longer, hence the diesel replacements in Birmingham.

[ellspurs]

Something that might interest you is the "this bus terminates here announcement" is rarely heard as it has long been the convention in Coventry to change the destination at the penultimate stop as there are few set down stops at terminals like London and it avoids confusion by having the destination already set or not in service if running off dead when the bus pulls up at what is the first stop on the next journey.

Way back when, in the pre-covid era of 2001-2002, I used to catch the 20 in Bedworth on my way home from work. Given the time I finished work, I would always miss the 8pm bus departing from Mill Street, so would wait on Park Road and catch the 8.20pm bus to Bedworth, and ride it around the loop it used to do through Collycroft to save me waiting 10 minutes for the same bus to come back. Given this was a Primelines route, it had bus stop announcements. The terminus was listed as Johnson Road. The bus never did an announcement for Johnson Road. It would appear on the screen, but you never heard anything. As the route was a loop, I'd have thought there would've been people on board that weren't me during the day.

Similarly with the 20A in Longford. You'd get announcements for Oban Road, Woodshires Road and Wilsons Lane (the last two just randomly happening as those roads were hail and ride at the time), then the next announcement was for the Canal Boat, skipping out the stop at the top of Bedworth Road by the county border bridge. I guess they needed a point where it switched directions on the destinations?

Sorry for the random rambling, but your comment made me think of it.

[Sandy Lane]

A Coventry car park is planned to permanently close so the site can be turned into an electric bus depot.

Cox Street car park is proposed to close by the end of October so it can be turned into a charging facility for 45 electric buses as part of the city's 'all-electric' ambitions.

Coventry is to receive 297 electric buses as part of plans to have an all-electric fleet by 2025, becoming the UK's first all-electric bus city.
https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/cox-street-car-park-coventry-20944049

[don]

That newspaper article refers to 297 electric buses in Coventry. That seems a remarkably high number, even if you take into account all the buses working into the city from other locations like Nuneaton, Birmingham, Leamington, Stratford and Solihull?