First Bus opens first electric depot in the Southwest of England
The bus depot is located in the seaside town of Weston-Super-Mare, and is being supported by an approx. €17.7m (£14.9m) investment from First Bus and the national Zero Emissions Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) initiative.
The new buses will be operated on two key bus routes in North Somerset – the X1 (Weston to Bristol) and X4 (Portishead to Bristol) – as well as a number of inner city routes in Bristol. It will mean that a third of First Bus’ fleet in Weston-Super-Mare will be electrified.
The 78-seater double decker buses are fully electric, with USB charging pints for each seat and a camera monitoring system in place of wing mirrors.
Details on chargers and charging capacity have not been disclosed, but the buses will be charged on a site the size of two football pitches built by Magnus Construction Group.
Doug Claringbold, MD for First Bus West of England, said: “Today is a major milestone in bringing smoother, quieter and more reliable bus journeys to our customers, and making sustainable transport even better for the environment, supporting our commitment to have a zero-emission fleet by 2035.”
He added: “This is our biggest investment in the local area for decades, and what we have created here in Weston will help secure a cleaner solution for transport for future generations and help inspire the nation to love and use the bus.”
Additionally, North Somerset Council has announced it will revamp up to 120 bus shelters on routes in the area. These will include solar panels and ‘living roofs’, as well as furniture constructed from recycled CDs.
First Bus South, which operates in southern parts of Somerset, last year announced it is also electrifying depots in Taunton and Minehead. In April 2024, First Bus also opened the UK’s first bus depot to offer public electric charging in Cornwall.
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