(01 Oct 2025, 1:00 pm)Arriva7446 wrote Electric buses are so boring, have no character at all, each model sounds the exact same. They are slow and will barely last 10 years without major expensive overhaul. That's why the gas buses and hybrids got retired early due to overhaul costs. They are not economical to buy or overhaul. Imagine how many more diesel buses could be bought for the same amount of cash. With the investment in electric buses you could probably replace every single bus in the North East with a brand new diesel for the same cost as the electrics coming.
As the finances simply don't add up that's why the taxpayer has had to fork out for all these buses as no well run financially competent business would ever touch one.
Passenger experience is worse as the silence when the bus is idle means you have no privacy for any conversations and everyone will hear what you say. There will be no engine noise to drown out squeaks and rattles so these will be more noticeable.
I've ridden plenty of electric buses to make these conclusions. Optare, Wright, ADL +BYD, ADL Integral, Yutong, all of them are soulless. Generally try to avoid them as much as possible but rode Arriva Blyth's Enviro 400EV just for the novelty of riding a bus to Blyth which is not 15 years old, but it's slower than the very worst of their awful 12 plate Pulsars.
In 15 years bus enthusiasm will no longer exist as a hobby due to electric buses. The hobby will be dead. I have no idea why anyone is interested in the latest news of Stagecoach getting so many electric buses, other than to avoid them at all costs of course. Hope Stagecoach Walkergate don't get any as I use the 37 often these days. I know Walkergate had the Enviro 400H which i actually kind of liked as they did have character and still the diesel engine but I know they were unreliable and not well liked. They have been retired early as 11 plates all went in last 2 years whereas still plenty of 58 plate pure diesel around and plenty older elsewhere. Will be 10X as bad with pure electric.
I love the sound of a good diesel engine, especially the B9TL being my favourite. However I was in Bristol over the weekend which have a lot of Yutongs, and a lot of B9s still. Sitting in parks or walking down by the canal, it wasn't very pleasant whenever a B9 came past louder than everything but the locals on superbikes, whereas you could enjoy sitting in the park with electrics going past all day without the slightest bit of noise pollution. That's before you actually get on and experience how nice and quiet those Yutongs are compared to diesel buses. I'm sorry your passion is changing and won't be as interesting, but for the actual passenger, and person using a city, whether that city be Bristol, Newcastle or Sunderland. I'm glad that electrics are here, and I can't wait for them to be absolutely everywhere.