RATP Dev is upgrading one of its London bus depots to house a fleet of 36 electric buses.
The Shepherd’s Bush location will house the vehicles for two all-electric Transport for London (TfL) bus routes, and the French company says it plans to turn the location ‘all-electric’, making it RATP’s first zero-emissions garage in London.
The firm already operates four all-electric buses out of Hounslow, and 246 hybrid buses within the UK capital altogether.
Chinese firm BYD (Build Your Dreams) and its UK partner Alexander Dennis are providing the 36 10.8m BYD ADL Enviro200EV electric buses and installing 37 charging units and associated charging infrastructure.
BYD’s smart charging technologies allow the buses to be charged overnight and are expected to help ease overall grid capacity.
SSE Enterprise and UK Power Networks are providing power to the depot.