Does anyone know what the cheapest new single decker bus in the UK?

[NorwichRailFan]

Hi, I was just wondering if anyone knew what the cheapest new, Base model, single decker bus in the UK. I can't find much info online about the subject.

 

[M803UYA]

Hi, I was just wondering if anyone knew what the cheapest new, Base model, single decker bus in the UK. I can't find much info online about the subject.

One helpful way of working out a per bus price is to look for an operator's press release. Sometimes they'll include a total figure for the investment. This is one batch of vehicles I know well from 2013. The interior specification we had on vehicles added £15k to the price - so £120,000 of this £1,1m was for having a coffee shop interior. However it's lasted a very long time. That takes you to £980k - so split by 8 that gets you to £122,500 per bus.

I did some research on this for a work project 15 years back as the customer was a council wanting to revamp their Park & Ride service with brand new buses for an operator to use on the contract. ADL weren't people who responded, but I did observe Southdown PSV (now Chartwell Bus Sales) offering stock Enviro 200s, so that was the number we used. Our approach was to ask bodybuilders, such as East Lancs, Optare and Wrights all of whom responded.

From time to time, dealer stock build ADLs come on the market through Chartwell. If you scroll through https://www.busandcoachbuyer.com/virtual-magazines/ and the back issues of Route One you may well find an advert for some plain white unregistered Enviro 400 MMCs that Chartwell had up for sale. They may have mentioned a price. I only mention that as I have the worst memory going for 'current' events but can tell you a lot about something from 1992....!

 

[busestrains]

Hi, I was just wondering if anyone knew what the cheapest new, Base model, single decker bus in the UK. I can't find much info online about the subject.

My guess would be the Chinese manufacturers. Maybe one of the BYD or Higer or King Long or Yutong buses. If i had to take a guess i would say the Higer Steed buses (which the Big Lemon in Brighton use) are probably very cheap. It is a shame it is so hard to find out the prices online.

One helpful way of working out a per bus price is to look for an operator's press release. Sometimes they'll include a total figure for the investment. This is one batch of vehicles I know well from 2013. The interior specification we had on vehicles added £15k to the price - so £120,000 of this £1,1m was for having a coffee shop interior. However it's lasted a very long time. That takes you to £980k - so split by 8 that gets you to £122,500 per bus.

I did some research on this for a work project 15 years back as the customer was a council wanting to revamp their Park & Ride service with brand new buses for an operator to use on the contract. ADL weren't people who responded, but I did observe Southdown PSV (now Chartwell Bus Sales) offering stock Enviro 200s, so that was the number we used. Our approach was to ask bodybuilders, such as East Lancs, Optare and Wrights all of whom responded.

From time to time, dealer stock build ADLs come on the market through Chartwell. If you scroll through https://www.busandcoachbuyer.com/virtual-magazines/ and the back issues of Route One you may well find an advert for some plain white unregistered Enviro 400 MMCs that Chartwell had up for sale. They may have mentioned a price. I only mention that as I have the worst memory going for 'current' events but can tell you a lot about something from 1992....!

One thing to note though is that bus operators who order multiple buses probably get a discount. I reckon the more buses they order the mire discount they get. So it might not always be an accurate way to find out the price of buying one bus.

 

[Towers]

My guess would be the Chinese manufacturers. Maybe one of the BYD or Higer or King Long or Yutong buses. If i had to take a guess i would say the Higer Steed buses (which the Big Lemon in Brighton use) are probably very cheap. It is a shame it is so hard to find out the prices online.


One thing to note though is that bus operators who order multiple buses probably get a discount. I reckon the more buses they order the mire discount they get. So it might not always be an accurate way to find out the price of buying one bus.

BYD are electric, aren't they, as is the Higer Steed. So presumably quite pricey if so.

I'd have thought the shortest Streetlight ('Wheel Forward'?) is, in the most basic spec, would be pretty competitive.

One thought OP would be to enquire as to what is the cheapest lease vehicle that someone like Dawsonrentals can offer, that should give a clue!

 

[Tetchytyke]

Pricing for new buses is a fluid concept, the price you pay depends on who you are and how many you're buying. A private buyer for 1 or 2 new buses will pay significantly more per unit than the big operators buying 100s. And the prices charged really are commercially sensitive.

Assuming you mean a full-size bus (so not a Sprinter-based breadvan, a Solo or a wheel-forward Streetlite), the cheapest stuff will likely be the Chinese buses or the Temsa Avenue (assuming they still make a RHD version?). The most expensive likely to be a Citaro.

 

[M803UYA]

One thing to note though is that bus operators who order multiple buses probably get a discount. I reckon the more buses they order the mire discount they get. So it might not always be an accurate way to find out the price of buying one bus.

I should have mentioned that, thanks for picking it up. The likes of Stagecoach effectively had production lines in factories as they're buying so many vehicles. Going some years back they were a major Volvo customer, and one of the production lines was for Stagecoach - same at ADL.

Covid has altered that somewhat.......

 

[ChrisPJ]

I don't think you'll get change out of a quarter of a million for a Higer Steed. Something like a Mellor bodied sprinter, probably less than 100k.

 

[Stan Drews]

I don't think you'll get change out of a quarter of a million for a Higer Steed. Something like a Mellor bodied sprinter, probably less than 100k.

A Mellor bodied Sprinter will set you back over £100k. Probably around 115k now, although it’s over a year since I last had a quote from them.