GTe14 creates a stir

Pelican Bus & Coach unveiled its new GTe14 electric coach to invited guests at the end of February, with the surprise news that it was to go on trial with National Express. Jonathan Welch reports

Rewinding the story a little, it’s ten years ago now that Yutong entered the UK market with the support of established truck dealership Pelican, based in the conveniently central location of Castleford, near Leeds. Back then, many might have dismissed the Chinese brand as no competitor for British and European products that were familiar stock for most operators at the time, especially given another Chinese brand’s less than successful attempt to crack the UK market around the same time.

So few would likely have predicted that a decade later, we’d be announcing the 1,000th Yutong delivered in the UK, or that a significant chunk of those deliveries would be electric buses, the company having somewhat crept up to steal a good slice of the pie in that segment.

Possibly even more significantly, and possibly to the embarrassment of some home-grown manufacturers, Yutong – supported of course by strong sales totalling some 180,000 electric buses in its home market – has managed two ‘firsts’ in the UK, not only launching the first electric coach in the shape of the TCe12, but now also the first ‘full-fat’ electric coach, the GTe14.

Facts and figures

[wlm_nonmember][…][/wlm_nonmember][wlm_ismember]

In its first year, 2014, Pelican sold 19 vehicles, quickly rising to 64, 89 and 85, before hitting 119 in 2018. Numbers dropped back in 2019 and 2020, before rising back into the hundreds in 2021 and 2022. Last year, the company had its best year so far, delivering some 237 vehicles, a mix consisting mainly of diesel coaches and full size electric single-deckers. As Pelican Managing Director Richard Crump pointed out during the launch of the GTe14, last year the company not only celebrated its 1,000th vehicle and a record year for sales, but also announced the arrival of the GTe14 and delivered its first U11DD electric double-deck demonstrators.

It has also invested heavily in vital after-sales support through the creation of a new parts warehouse, crucially allowing it to ship most parts to operators with a 24-hour turn-around. The growth in its PSV business has meant the opening of a new bus and coach site a short distance from the original, giving much more space. The original site, just across the road from Pelican’s truck business, remains in use as well, providing overflow capacity and extra space for pre-delivery inspections.

Overall, as Richard explained, the company has trebled its capacity for vehicle preparation, to keep up with the volume of orders, and as he reminded listeners, around 30% of the value of each electric bus is added in the UK, with systems such as CCTV as well as interior components, including seats, being fitted by Pelican at Castleford.

Expanding the business further, the EV Automotive Training division was also launched in 2023, which has deliberately been named to emphasise its neutrality; it is not just for Yutong customers, and can offer IMI accredited training to high voltage levels 1-4 in both light and heavy vehicles, as well as IRTEC qualifications. That side of the business has already trained over 250 technicians, a sign of the growing demand for such training.

Family pride

Richard was joined by daughter Amelia, Pelican’s Area Sales Manager for Northern England and North Wales, for the GTe14 launch presentation, and is clearly proud both of the company he currently leads and of the fact that Amelia has become the fourth generation of the family to join the firm. It’s come a long way since it was founded by Richard’s grandfather Ernest in 1919.

About 80% of Pelican’s business is now buses and coaches, Richard explained, a sign of how much that side of the company has expanded in such a short time.

“We sold our first Yutong to John Cropley in 2014,” Richard recalled. “He’s still got it. Ten years later, it was a great pleasure for me to see our 1,000th bus in service at Heathrow recently.

“We’ve got 192 vehicles to put through just in the first quarter of this year, we’re on track for our 1,250th vehicle in 2024. I remember investigating whether to enter the UK market in 2013, but in the last 10 years we’ve achieved a great level of brand acceptance.

Reflecting on the previous decade, Richard and Amelia presented the 2023 market statistics, which show that Yutong sits in fifth place, behind Alexander Dennis, Wrightbus, BYD and Volvo, and comfortably ahead of Mercedes-Benz, Scania and Irizar in terms of overall vehicle deliveries. In its home market, Yutong remains market leader in terms of volume. It produced almost four times as many large vehicles in 2023 as its nearest rival Higer, and approaching 50% more electric coaches and buses than second-placed BYD, and in a marketplace much more discerning that ours, with a choice of over 20 vehicle manufacturers for operators to choose from.

In the UK, the company has an 11% market share of the overall segment, though Pelican points out that given it only offered a single-deck product and did not sell into the large London market, its provincial market share is around 22% overall, and over 40% of the provincial single-deck market.

Electric energy

Although a familiar sight on the motorways of central Scotland in service with Ember, the TCe12 is perhaps less well known to readers south of the border, though there are plenty of examples in use with a number of operators, and one is currently on trial with FlixBus on a route between South Wales and London. It’s a vehicle which has enabled the start of the zero-emission revolution in the coach sector, and whilst it has a lot going for it, it’s hard to deny that it’s not a touring coach. It’s a vehicle that fills a segment of the market which, if we were on the Continent, might be served by an Irizar i4 or Mercedes-Benz Intouro; interurban services, local hires and day trips are all within its capabilities, but a high-capacity tourer it isn’t.

What it has done, though, is enabled Pelican, and operators, to test the market, and at an acceptable cost; it’s no secret that electric vehicles still carry a price premium. But having listened to its customers, Pelican clearly felt that now was the time to bring to market a full-spec, full-size coach. Despite the hefty price tag (as one operator recently said to me, he could buy two diesel coaches from a German marque for the same money), Ember has ordered 14 already to upgrade and expand its Scottish express services, whilst – to the surprise of many at the launch event – Pelican’s demonstrator model is to spend a month with National Express on trial between London Victoria and Stansted Airport from 7 March. For Pelican and for Yutong, as Richard put it, “the GTe14 shows we are able to move to the next level.”

GTe14

So what of the new coach? It’s certainly an imposing piece of kit at 13.97 metres long. Stylistically speaking, it’s from the same mould as the familiar GT12 and GT13 diesel coaches, which is no bad thing. It still looks fresh. Probably the most striking thing to observe on first look is how the lack of traditional mirrors affects the look of the front of the coach; coupled with the raked windscreen, the effect is of a somewhat American-looking vehicle.

I said recently that I do still like traditional mirrors, but I can certainly see the point of the camera system here, especially on an electric vehicle where every little energy saving can help eke out the mileage, or reduce range anxiety on a cold winter’s day. It’s suggested that the change to camera mirror systems can give an increase of around 2% when it comes to range and efficiency. The demonstrator has a 563kW battery capacity, but for those wanting more still, a higher battery capacity of 621 kWh is planned for next year. A 422kW option is also available.

The batteries themselves are spread throughout the vehicle, with a pair housed above the front wheels, followed by more ahead of the second axle, helping with weight distribution, whilst the remainder are housed in the ‘conventional’ location at the rear.

The coach is of course also fitted with a 360-degree all-round vision system, which is a huge bonus when manoeuvring any large vehicle. Naturally, that extra third axle – with Bosch active steering – is also a talking point, and very necessary to carry the extra weight of the 563kW batteries. Like its diesel cousins, the GTe14 runs on familiar ZF axles.

Stepping aboard, the coach retains the family feel of the GT12, and shares the same dashboard with just some minor amendments to instrumentation to reflect its zero-emission powertrain. The driver’s work space and dashboard is, therefore, well laid out with a good feel to it. Naturally, Pelican is showing off what it is capable of with the demonstrator, and National Express passengers will find themselves travelling in Yutong-designed high-quality seats trimmed in a very smart, if brave, choice of cream and blue leather seats. The aisle seat in each pair slides sideways for extra space, whilst all seats have moving, height-adjustable headrests.

During the demonstration drive, I found the seats extremely comfortable, helped too by the fold-down footrest. Pelican has really shown what it can do on the interior; the Ember coaches feature a similar high-quality feel, though in more muted dark colours and without a carpeted aisle. Wood-effect flooring is fitted, of course.

Accessibility

In what is possibly a first for a single-decker on the National Express network, the coach features a second door on the nearside in the centre, alongside which is the usual sunken toilet. The door opens to reveal a wide staircase, opposite which is space for a wheelchair user. The lift – a Dhollandia example on this coach – emerges from within the steps, and as Richard pointed out, arcs partially inwards as it raises, helping to reduce the ‘hung off the side’ feeling for wheelchair users as they board and alight.

Once aboard, the wheelchair user has an aisle-level space which is fitted with suitable floor-mounted restraints; seating is raised at either side of the aisle, and an infill section can be fitted into the space for operators not requiring to accommodate a wheelchair user, allowing an extra four seats to be fitted.

I was particularly pleased to note that a modesty panel and handrail were fitted ahead of the seats behind the wheelchair space; I’ve often noticed that where a wheelchair space is available, the next row of seats has nothing but empty space in front, which never quite feels right to me.

A further bonus of the wheelchair access arrangement is that the wide stairwell makes access to the on-board toilet much easier.

Capable of seating up to 61 passengers, the demonstrator is only fitted with 53 seats, along with provision for four more in the wheelchair area. The seats on this example are fitted with all of the now-expected facilities, including an array of USB and wireless charging options as well as fold-down tables with pop-up cup-holders, plus magazine nets. Arm rests are fitted to aisle seats.

Within the saloon, noise levels were minimal in all positions, and the ride from the three ZF axles consistently smooth.

National Express trial

National Express trialled a TCe12 on the Stansted service in 2020. Speaking about its decision to trial the larger coach, the company’s Zero Emission Vehicle Specialist Tom Berry explained that the coach will be charged using a temporary 140kW charging facility at Stansted Airport, and will be expected to operate on the same gruelling schedules as the operator’s diesel fleet. Each coach has a layover of around an hour at Stansted, allowing time for top-up charging between journeys to London and back, which should be comfortably within the GTe14’s expected 250 to 300 mile range.

Initially, Zenobe is providing the temporary charging infrastructure, consisting of re-purposed former bus batteries which are constantly trickle-charged at around 40kW using the available grid supply, allowing for a faster 140kW charge whilst the coach is plugged in. Should the trial prove successful and lead to firm orders, the operator says it will look to install chargers capable of delivering 300kW via twin air-cooled 150kW CCS2 connectors, though Pelican says that a charging rate of up to 600kW is possible with no detrimental effect on battery life using a pair of liquid-cooled 300kW chargers.

“As the leading inter-city operator we need to be committed to supporting the industry using our size and scale,” Tom said at the launch. “We’re the first operator to test the GTe14, and we want to understand its capability and ability on our network.”

Comparing it to the TCe12, he added: “We’re keen to see what a vehicle with extra capacity, luggage space and range can do. The coach will be on trial throughout March, and then we will work with Pelican and Yutong to assess the results and steer where we go in the future.”

Asked about the position of the wheelchair lift, Tom explained that he foresaw no problems compared to the standard National Express location in the front door, and that it hadn’t been possible to fit such an arrangement to the GTe14, though given Yutong’s previous willingness to adapt its designs to meet customer demand, it’s not hard to foresee a large fleet order resulting in such a modification.

Where next?

After its National Express trial, the GTe14 will be available for viewing at the UK Coach Rally in April, and Pelican says it has interest from a number of other operators. It’s hard not to be impressed by the quality of the coach and by Pelican’s enthusiasm for it. We await the results of the National Express trial, and look forward to seeing Ember’s fleet hit the road with interest. It’s been an interesting few weeks for zero-emission coaching, and although there remain hurdles to clear, it’s a definite sign of the way the sector is progressing. As Richard Crump said, the GTe14 really does take it to the next level.

 

[/wlm_ismember]