Wrightbus’ new heavy duty single-decker broke cover in late February. Jonathan Welch took it for an exclusive first drive
It was well known that Wrightbus was working on a single-deck version of its Streetdeck double-decker, available in diesel form for a number of years and recently launched as a hydrogen bus. But the manufacturer had remained tight-lipped about the arrival of the first production vehicle, which was due to go on test at Millbrook in the last weeks of February. However, sharp-eyed enthusiasts spotted the bus in Ipswich, where it spent a week on loan to Ipswich Buses for evaluation en route to Millbrook, making for an unusual sight on the streets of Suffolk in its blue Translink livery. Thanks to Translink, Ipswich Buses General Manager Steven Bryce and Wrightbus’ John McLeister, CBW was able to secure a test drive of Wrighbus’ new integral competitor in the heavy duty single-deck segment of the market during its short stay in England.
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Styling
The first thing anyone will notice about a new bus, be it a passenger, driver or enthusiast, is the styling. On the new single-decker, whose model name is not being revealed until the official launch with Translink this summer, this echoes the double-deck Streetdeck, and poses a strong resemblance to the Eclipse 3 bodywork supplied on Volvo chassis to a small number of operators. The family lineage from the earlier Eclipse and Solar bodywork is evident along the sides and around the rear, whilst the very angular front end seems more well-proportioned on a single-deck vehicle than its double-deck cousin. Indeed, a significant amount of the bodywork, along with the basic chassis design, is carried over from the Streetdeck, ensuring a large parts commonality across mixed fleets, one of the key reasons for Translink’s decision to opt for these single-deckers.
The angular overhang of the destination screen above the windscreen, coupled with the squared light clusters with LED day running lights give the front end a very chiselled appearance. Wrightbus’ signature top-mounted windscreen wipers sit atop the windscreen, making for a generally clean and uncluttered appearance, as well as reducing the number of parts which can be easily damaged in an accident. This example for Translink is fitted with an illuminated Translink logo in the dash panel, a feature which a number of operators have started to specify.
Interior
Stepping aboard the bus, the driver’s cab is partitioned with a full-height screen, as is typical of most UK operators’ requirements. The platform area is fitted with a standard manual wheelchair ramp, which I found adequate although the handle didn’t seem the most user-friendly to get fingers into. Turning into the saloon, travellers used to earlier Wrightbus products will feel at home, as the overall styling is carried through from earlier Millennium-range vehicles – and why not? The design is still both modern and functional, so no need to change for change’s sake. The curved ceiling helps get rid of the ‘box on wheels’ image, whilst the two rows of diffused LED lighting give good illumination around the saloon. A perforated ceiling helps to reduce noise, whilst the space above the windows provides ample room for all-important advertising, be it corporate or commercial.
Finished to Translink specification, the interior of this bus featured high-quality leather seats with three-point seatbelts. At 12.1 metres, the bus has a maximum seated capacity of 40, with the standee capacity stated as 44, though at the time of CBW’s test drive this first completed bus had yet to be weighed to confirm maximum capacity: the vehicle’s GVW is stated as 18,468kg. Above the front wheels are luggage racks at both sides of the aisle, surrounded by low rails. I was pleased to note that there was no lip around the edge of the base, meaning that they are easy to sweep out and wipe clean, removing a potential dirt-trap.
The floor of this bus is in a pleasing two-tone scheme, with the aisle in a lighter grey. Whilst it looks smart, as a driver I always found the clear delineation of the aisle a useful feature when faced with multiple passengers wanting to board with pushchairs or wheeled shopping bags: having the aisle clearly marked makes it easy for passengers to know what space is available. A small point maybe, but it is sometimes easy to overlook the realities of day-to-day use when looking at a new product on a test drive with the benefit of no passengers aboard.
The seating is raised towards the rear of the bus, with two steps for passengers to negotiate, plus a third to reach the rear-most seats, which are positioned quite high – so much so that the cove panels are specially shaped to provide additional headroom. Some may dislike the number of steps, but viewed from a different perspective (quite literally) it means that all passengers have a good forward view, relatively unimpeded by those in front – and conversely makes it harder for certain types to ‘hide’ at the back of the bus. A total of five tip-up seats are available in the wheelchair and buggy areas, and unlike earlier generations of Wrightbus products there are no seats forward of the front wheels over the wheelarches.
Power
Those who pay close attention to such details will notice that as well as being high up, the rear row of seats is quite far forward for a single-decker. As I had noted when looking around the exterior, the space under the ‘bonnet’ is quite large – certainly much larger than needed for the 170kW Euro VI four-cylinder Daimler OM934 engine and Voith D854.6 four-speed transmission fitted on this bus. Larger, even, than required for the more powerful OM936 six-cylinder engine – which tips at Wrightbus’ intentions to make this bus available with alternative power options in the near future. The same chassis will form the foundation for both a hydrogen and battery-electric version, clearly showing the direction Wrightbus believes the market will turn during this model’s life-span.
In the cab
Returning to the cab area, drivers familiar with recent Wrightbus products will be instantly at home here. Operator-specific and fuel-source differences aside, the layout is essentially the same as the double-deck hydrogen versions launched recently in Aberdeen, and of course similar to Wrightbus’ lightweight Streetlite range. Entry and egress posed no problems, and I was pleased to see an ample-sized area to stow a bag beneath the ticket machine – large enough that my camera rucksack fitted in almost completely. Some drivers will like the extra airiness that the clear perspex panel behind their left shoulder gives, though no doubt others will say a solid panel would reduce reflections in the windscreen at night – whichever way you see it, passengers will appreciate the better forward view which it affords. Also behind the driver, a coat hook is well-located, meaning a driver has space to settle in, hang up their jacket and stow their bag.
Another feature which stands out on this particular bus is the use of e-mirrors, a feature which seems to be taking off more slowly in the coach and bus sector than in haulage, if the number of HGVs I see on the motorways is anything to go by. Translink is now fitting e-mirrors as standard on all its new buses. This was the first time I’ve driven a bus under ‘real’ conditions with a camera mirror system so I was curious to have a go, and the experience was interesting.
The system itself worked well, and the view was undoubtedly good, from both the ‘standard’ and wide-angle lenses. I found myself using the wide-angle view more than the normal view, as it appeared closer to how I would set my conventional mirrors. The screens were clear, and both easily visible, and although maybe not obvious from photographs, the nearside mirror was in the same direction I would be looking if I had been using a standard extended nearside mirror arm.
Looking at the more general topic of camera systems, I do wonder if moving the driver’s focus away from the nearside corner and to a point inside the bus might lead to a loss of awareness of the position of the that part of the vehicle. I found myself having to make a conscious effort to look both in the screen and then at the corner of the bus, compared to a conventional mirror where you are both looking in it and at it at the same time. However, it is difficult to see a better way of fitting the screen on a bus fitted with an assault screen, and in that regard Wrightbus has done a good job in locating the screens. The offside ‘mirror’ on the A-pillar gave no worry, and I’m sure that once drivers adapt and get used to it, the system will prove itself very popular. Having spoken to Translink after my drive, the operator reports a positive response from drivers when introducing this system on its other recent new Wrightbus builds.
On the road
Taking the bus out on the roads, we followed one of the town’s bus routes to put it through its paces on a variety of hilly, narrow and twisty residential streets as well as some faster-moving dual carriageways and main roads. Overall, I found the bus to be pleasant to drive. The steering is well weighted, tight and responsive, and although the bus was clearly set up for fuel economy, I could still feel that there was sufficient torque from the 4-cylinder engine to propel us along. I was pleased to note that when I tried to cause the bus to kick down a gear, it did so. My impression was
that for most operators on urban routes, the four-cylinder OM934 engine will suffice; those operating on hillier terrain or interurban work might prefer the extra power of the OM936 version.
The desire of the gearbox to be in the highest possible gear at every moment does result in more vibration than I would have liked to feel, as the engine seems to labour along at very low revs – though it must be borne in mind that the trade off between comfort and economy will be even more at the forefront of operators’ minds as the industry pulls itself into post-Covid recovery mode, so this is of little surprise.
That said, putting aside the slow take-off, I found that the sensation of speed was less than I expected, no doubt due to the low-revving engine, and a couple of times found myself driving faster than I realised, even uphill. I found that visibility all around was in general very good, helped by the deep windscreen, and working space within the cab area ample, thanks in part to Wrightbus’ adjustable combined steering column and dashboard.
Despite a wheelbase of almost six and a half metres, I had no problems manoeuvring the bus in some of the residential streets, with plenty of steering lock on hand when needed. I did find that the front suspension seemed unduly harsh over bumps, a point which Wrightbus will hopefully be able to fine-tune as the bus undergoes further testing.
Evolution not revolution
Whilst this new heavy duty single-decker may be part of Wrightbus’ move into new technologies, it is at the same time an evolution of the manufacturer’s family line, which should help alleviate operators’ fears of taking on the unknown when it comes to alternative power sources. A known product with a different driveline is much more palatable than an entirely new product. And the fact that the underpinnings are designed to accommodate multiple drive options also gives rise to the thought that, as diesel becomes less favoured, it might even be possible to re-engineer diesel buses with battery or hydrogen power with the minimum of modification. During our short test, the bus proved itself to be capable and offers a credible new alternative in the market, and I look forward to seeing electric and hydrogen versions in the near future.
It is perhaps unsurprising that Translink already operates a significant fleet of Wrightbus products, and equally unsurprising that it is the launch customer for the new single-decker. Talking about the investment in its new buses, built locally in Northern Ireland, Ian Campbell, Translink’s Director of Service Operations, told CBW: “Translink is leading a transport transformation in Northern Ireland and we’re committed to supporting a green recovery following Covid-19. Our Wrightbus contract for these new low emission buses is a vital part of our climate action strategy to deliver a 50% reduction in emissions by 2030. Beyond this we have ambitious plans to achieve net zero emissions by 2040 and a long-term vision to be climate positive before 2050.
“These fully accessible modern buses represent significant investment across four vehicle types including hydrogen, battery electric and low emission diesel technologies, suiting a range of service requirements and featuring the latest innovations like the camera mirror system replacing wing mirrors.
“This order is excellent news for our customers, enhancing their journey experience with more comfort, convenience and service performance as the buses roll-out across our network. We look forward to continuing to work with Wrightbus to deliver these new buses and transform our fleet as we emerge from these challenging times and more people return to public transport.”
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