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First Greater Glasgow

DunsBus

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Here's a link to an online news article about the fire.


As you'll see from the photo that accompanies it, 32657 is now little more than a shell whilst 33981 has extensive damage to its nearside.
Ahh yes, thanks for that, its a shame to see things like that but they're lucky to get it under control when they did, if it completely spread or burned down the E400MMC it could have spread into the garage (or depot) causing possibly millions.
 

DunsBus

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Ahh yes, thanks for that, its a shame to see things like that but they're lucky to get it under control when they did, if it completely spread or burned down the E400MMC it could have spread into the garage (or depot) causing possibly millions.
That actually did happen, back in 1992, at the old Larkfield depot (which Caledonia replaced). Sixty buses were lost, along with part of the depot; there's a rather cruel irony in 32657's unfortunate demise given what happened to 60 of the genuine articles nearly 30 years ago.
 

JumpinTrainz

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For history to repeat itself would have been catastrophic at this stage given the amount of investment First have made in order to accommodate more eco buses into the fleet. This is bad but like said above - could have been a lot worse!
 

route101

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Seen one of the 57 plate Geminis branded for One service today.

Also noted Airport bus at Clydebank Bus Station.
 

Strathclyder

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That actually did happen, back in 1992, at the old Larkfield depot (which Caledonia replaced). Sixty buses were lost, along with part of the depot; there's a rather cruel irony in 32657's unfortunate demise given what happened to 60 of the genuine articles nearly 30 years ago.
The kind of stuff you can't make up. A sad end indeed, was by far my favourite of the heritage trio, helped along by 657's oddball status. Managed to catch it a few times on my local FiG route (the 2).

But at the same time, it's frankly a relief that this incident was confined to one bus destroyed, one bus damaged, no injuries/fatalites and no damage to depot structures/infrastructure. The emergency services are to be commended for their swift response & professionalism in containing the spread of the blaze. A repeat of the 1992 disaster at Larkfield doesn't bear thinking about, considering the massive fleet investment over the last 2-3 years.

Here is one of my best photos of it after it was repainted as a piece of posterity, caught as it crossed the Glasgow Bridge with a Eaglesham-bound 4A in May 2019, two days after being publicly unveiled at Lathalmond:


Seems to be a daily occurance of late.
Been happening for a while now. Been used as a 'bothy bus' to aid with social distancing measures.
 
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92002

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The kind of stuff you can't make up. A sad end indeed, was by far my favourite of the heritage trio, helped along by 657's oddball status. Managed to catch it a few times on my local FiG route (the 2).

But at the same time, it's frankly a relief that this incident was confined to one bus destroyed, one bus damaged, no injuries/fatalites and no damage to depot structures/infrastructure. The emergency services are to be commended for their swift response & professionalism in containing the spread of the blaze. A repeat of the 1992 disaster at Larkfield doesn't bear thinking about, considering the massive fleet investment over the last 2-3 years.

Here is one of my best photos of it after it was repainted as a piece of posterity, caught as it crossed the Glasgow Bridge with a Eaglesham-bound 4A in May 2019, two days after being publicly unveiled at Lathalmond:



Been happening for a while now. Been used as a 'bothy bus' to aid with social distancing measures.
It obviously doesn't stay there though. It's in different places on different days. So must come from and to a depot daily.
 

Strathclyder

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It obviously doesn't stay there though. It's in different places on different days. So must come from and to a depot daily.
Oh of course. That's what I was getting at. Been outta the loop for a while, but I beleve that there was at least one based at Scotstoun for this kind of work.
 

route101

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I managed to the catch the 55 plate B7TL in Strathclyde Colours a few times, once on the 31.
 
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A bit more info on what type of buses are coming to the fleet:

FIRST BUS ORDERS 126 BYD ADL BUSES TO BRING GLASGOW FLEET TO 150 ELECTRICS​

Published: 31 Mar 2021​

Alexander Dennis Limited (ADL) and BYD UK jointly announced today that their electric vehicle partnership, the UK’s leading electric bus producer, has received a firm order from First Bus for a further 126 zero-emission buses for Glasgow, comprising 91 double deck and 35 single deck buses. All are part-funded by the Scottish Government. The order is the largest ever for electric buses in Scotland.
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.
The BYD ADL partnership has taken the order from First Bus after the operator’s bid for funding in the Scottish Government’s latest round of Scottish Ultra Low Emission Bus Scheme was successful. Using BYD’s battery electric driveline technology, ADL will assemble the buses at its factory in Falkirk, ensuring the investment benefits the local economy in Scotland’s Central Belt.
First Bus has opted for 91 BYD ADL Enviro400EV double deck buses, each of which will be 10.8m long, and 35 single deck BYD ADL Enviro200EV with a length of 11.6m each. These new buses will all be introduced to the Glasgow city bus network by March 2023.
They will join two BYD ADL Enviro200EV that have been operating since January 2020 as well as 22 similar single deck buses ordered in February 2021 for delivery ahead of the UN’s COP26 climate summit, taking the company’s electric bus fleet in Scotland’s largest city to 150 vehicles, all of which will be based at the operator’s Caledonia depot where they will be charged at night.
Janette Bell, First Bus’s Managing Director said, “As leaders in sustainable mobility, we are fully aligned with the Government’s ambitions for a zero-carbon bus fleet and have already committed to this by 2035. We will continue to ensure that our progress doesn’t just exceed the expectation outlined in the Strategy, but that it also puts the expectations of our customers front and centre.”
Andrew Jarvis, Managing Director for First Glasgow, said, “We have led the way with bus operators in Glasgow as a key partner of Glasgow City Council for the country’s first ever LEZ rollout and this latest announcement helps us to deliver shared objectives and make up lost time due to the pandemic.”
Paul Davies, ADL President & Managing Director, said, “This is a very large investment by First Bus in new electric buses and is yet another step on their journey to achieve a zero-emission fleet by 2035, and we look forward to working closely with them to get these new buses onto the streets of Glasgow at pace.
“These zero emission buses will be built at our factory in Falkirk and it is great news for Scotland that this investment is being recycled into the local economy, allowing the benefits to be felt across our communities whilst helping to underpin skilled jobs.”
Commenting on the zero-emissions benefits of eMobility, BYD UK Managing Director, Frank Thorpe, said, “Increasingly for central and local government, eMobility has emerged as the most viable method of delivering sustainable, emissions-free public transport. I’m delighted the Scottish Government is backing eMobility and I hope further funding is forthcoming across the UK. We firmly believe the future of the transport industry lies in the development of New Energy vehicles,” he said, “specifically, battery-powered pure-electric vehicles. Electric buses represent the best long-term solution for public transport operators, delivering tangible, sustainable benefits today.”
 
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JumpinTrainz

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I’m glad First are ordering a lot more deckers rather than singles. The only decker type left by the end of this order will be E400s and B9TLs.
 

route101

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I’m glad First are ordering a lot more deckers rather than singles. The only decker type left by the end of this order will be E400s and B9TLs.

Yes, I worried it was going to be mostly singles. Tridents, B7TLs and B7RLES will be next up for withdrawal.
 

JumpinTrainz

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Yes, I worried it was going to be mostly singles. Tridents, B7TLs and B7RLES will be next up for withdrawal.
126 buses and a probable reduction in PVR as a result of Covid I reckon will see off the remaining tridents, B7TLs and B7RLEs. However that’s a pretty big reduction considering the B7TLs, B7RLEs and remaining tridents are sitting at about 170 odd buses.
 
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lastbus

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126 buses and a probable reduction in PVR as a result of Covid I reckon will see off the remaining tridents, B7TLs and B7RLEs. However that’s a pretty big reduction considering the B7TLs, B7RLEs and remaining tridents are sitting at about 170 odd buses.
There are 22 single deckers coming this year that are not included in the 126 that are coming later.
 
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JumpinTrainz

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I think this has been asked further up but do the E400EV come in E400City form or just the usual E400MMC style?
 

Jordan Adam

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It just comes in the city form, there are no E400EVs with BYD running gear in the standard MMC bodywork
Indeed, however if an operator wanted the MMC style bodywork ADL would build them. The E400s are designed/constructed in a way that theoretically you can have either design on any variant, they're structurally the same the only differences are cosmetic.

That being said it's fairly safe to assume the new deckers Glasgow will be on the City style body. Which is probably a good thing as with the right livery it's probably one of the best looking deckers produced. The only real reason they didn't go with Cities in the 2018/19 orders is because they already had MMCs in the fleet so helped with standardisation and they wanted something that "looked" upmarket for the 500.
 

JumpinTrainz

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Indeed, however if an operator wanted the MMC style bodywork ADL would build them. The E400s are designed/constructed in a way that theoretically you can have either design on any variant, they're structurally the same the only differences are cosmetic.

That being said it's fairly safe to assume the new deckers Glasgow will be on the City style body. Which is probably a good thing as with the right livery it's probably one of the best looking deckers produced. The only real reason they didn't go with Cities in the 2018/19 orders is because they already had MMCs in the fleet so helped with standardisation and they wanted something that "looked" upmarket for the 500.
I agree the City design does look incredibly smart as seen on the ex-airport buses which have recently been painted.

It’ll be good for First to have for the first time in a while a fairly standard fleet once LEZ comes into play. By then it’ll probably be a majority of ADL vehicles with some Wright stock (Streetlites and some Wright B9TLs).
 

JumpinTrainz

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The Airport ones are the same length as the 77 batch so they're longer wheelbase than the rest of the other MMCs
Are the buses coming the same size as the airport ones or the standard E400MMCs?

Also noticed the E200EVs look quite short compared to the size of a B7RLE so will the 9 be losing capacity?
 

cnjb8

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Are the buses coming the same size as the airport ones or the standard E400MMCs?

Also noticed the E200EVs look quite short compared to the size of a B7RLE so will the 9 be losing capacity?
IIRC the highest seating capacity on an E200EV is 39-40 seats.
 

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