Alexander Dennis Enviro 500
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The Alexander Dennis Enviro 500 (previously known as the TransBus Enviro 500) is a tri-axle double-decker bus built by Alexander Dennis (formerly by TransBus) in the United Kingdom, It was unveiled in 2002.
It is one of the Enviro-series bus models made by TransBus/Alexander Dennis and is designed and built according to current European standards and the operating environment of Hong Kong.
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[edit] Design
The Dennis chassis for Enviro 500 (also known as Trident E500) is actually a modified Trident 3. It can be fitted with Cummins ISMe335 Euro III engine (later Cummins ISLe340 Euro IV engine which uses AdBlue to reduce emission of nitrogen oxides through selective catalytic reduction process), or ISM-330 engine for the buses delivered to North America, and coupled to Voith DIWA864.3E 4-speed or ZF 5HP602 5-speed gearbox. Voith DIWA864.5 4-speed gearbox and ZF 6HP602 6-speed gearbox are also available since 2003 and 2004 respectively and now they are the standard configurations.
Initially only the 12-metre (40-foot)-long version of the Enviro 500 was built, but in 2007 Alexander Dennis announced the production of the 12.8-metre-long version.[1]
The Enviro 500 bodywork is also available with Volvo B9TL chassis.
[edit] External appearance
The body of the Enviro 500 was based on the single-deck Enviro 300, and the upper-deck frontal design was similar to the design used on the Plaxton President body.
The vehicle exceeded some design limitations in Hong Kong, prompting the local Transport Department to make some exclusions in order to make the buses available to KMB on time.
- The width of the bus is 2550mm (100.3 inches), exceeded the limit of 2500mm (98.4 inches). The width of 2550mm, approved by the EU, became the current standard.
- A fixed glass replaced the emergency door at the rear of the upper deck, but with more hammers available for emergency.
- The front indicators are the smallest of all current models of KMB.
The modified version of Enviro 500 body, first built in late 2003, have revised frontal and rear designs.
[edit] Hong Kong
[edit] Kowloon Motor Bus
The Enviro 500 is the first model of second-generation low-floor buses for Kowloon Motor Bus, with straight staircase and plug door (only at the exit) fitted. All KMB's Enviro 500 buses had a bronze band added to the champagne livery to differentiate them from the first-generation low-floor buses.
When TransBus announced the development of the Enviro 500, KMB became the launch customer by switching the last 20 of an order of 100 Dennis Trident 3 to the Enviro 500 in 2002. Later in the same year, KMB placed a second order for a further 100 of the vehicles. The first Enviro 500 arrived in Hong Kong on 12 November 2002 and was registered in January 2003. The remaining 119 buses entered service between March 2003 and November 2003.
In 2003 KMB placed the third order for 65 Enviro 500s, quickly followed by a further 50. The bodywork of these buses received a number of minor modifications. The first 112 buses entered service between November 2003 and June 2005, and the remaining three buses were registered by its subsidiary Long Win Bus.
Due to the commencement of the KCR West Rail in late 2003 and KCR Ma On Shan Rail in late 2004, Transport Department of Hong Kong requested KMB to reduce its fleet size, so the registration of these four batches of KMB Enviro 500 were delayed and some of them were stored for a long time before entering service.
In 2005, KMB placed a further order for 25 more vehicles with modified bodywork and new Alexander Dennis badge, 24 of them (five had their electronic route destination displays supplied by Gorba instead of Hanover) entered service in early 2006, and the last one, a Euro IV-engined prototype, with fleet number ATEU1 (originally ATE257), has entered service on 24 May 2006. The bus is one of the two buses which are first to meet the Euro IV emission standard in Hong Kong. (Another one is a Volvo B9TL with fleet number AVD1.)
A new order for 15 more buses was placed by KMB in late 2005; they entered service in August 2006.
[edit] Long Win Bus
Long Win Bus registered three Enviro 500 buses, which were acquired from KMB, in August 2005 (with fleet number 801-803) to cope with the increased demand for bus services after the opening of Hong Kong Disneyland.
In late 2005, Long Win Bus ordered five more buses which had luggage racks fitted when new. The first four buses (804-807) entered service in June/July 2006. The last one (fleet number 601), which was fitted with coach seats, entered service in July 2006.
[edit] Citybus
Citybus ordered 10 Enviro 500 buses with Euro IV engine and luggage racks, soon after its sister company New World First Bus's order. The first batch of chassis arrived Hong Kong in the third quarter of 2007 for body assembly in NWFB depot at Chong Fu Road. They entered service in December 2007/January 2008.
[edit] KCRC
Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation ordered 9 12-metre long Euro IV-engined Enviro 500 buses in early 2007 for its Feeder Bus service.[2] The first completed bus arrived Hong Kong on November 24, 2007, then registered in February 2008 and entered service in March 2008; the rest of them entered service in March/April 2008.
They have been loaned to MTR Corporation for running MTR Feeder Bus (previously known as KCR Feeder Bus) routes.
[edit] New World First Bus
New World First Bus ordered 18 Enviro 500 buses with Euro IV engine in early 2007.[2] 17 buses entered service in early/mid-2008, another one (fleet number 5504) was shipped to Australia in March 2008, after body assembly, for demonstration in several cities between April and May 2008. Both NWFB and Citybus will purchase about 300 similar vehicles in coming 5 years.
[edit] North America
In 2004 Alexander Dennis started to explore the North American market for its Enviro 500. The American version of Enviro 500 have modified bodies and redesigned fuel tanks, which enable the straight staircase to be moved forward. Alexander Dennis built one left hand drive Enviro 500 for demonstration in the United States and Canada.
Bus operators which had evaluated the Enviro 500 include Community Transit of Snohomish County, Washington (December 2005), Unitrans of Davis (January 2006, two weeks), OC Transpo of Ottawa (June 28 to July 12, 2006 and February 2007) and the San Francisco Municipal Railway of San Francisco (November 2007 to January 2008).[3]
[edit] Canada
BC Transit ordered nine Enviro 500 which were allocated to Victoria, British Columbia and entered service in early 2005. Two of them had taken part in a promotional show in USA, which was organized by Alexander Dennis in January 2005, before entering service.
GO Transit, Toronto's regional transit authority, has purchased twelve 12.8-metre version of Enviro 500s in a C$10.835 million deal and they are expected to be implemented in early 2008.
OC Transpo also decided to purchase 3 Enviro 500s for further testings, after two trials in 2006/2007. Deliveries are expected in winter 2008.
[edit] United States
Gray Line ordered 20 open-top Enviro 500 for its sightseeing operations in New York and put them into service in spring 2005, these being the first open-top Enviro 500 built. Gray Line also received three single-door Enviro 500 in summer 2005 for operation in San Francisco.
Citizens Area Transit of Las Vegas had its first 50 Enviro 500s entered service by October 2005. The service, marketed as "The Deuce", runs along the Las Vegas Strip. Certain high-traffic routes, such as along Maryland Parkway and Nellis Boulevard, have also used these buses. They offer extra ventilation grilles outside engine compartment to cope with Nevada's dry climate and high temperature. Las Vegas's Enviro 500s have the biggest air conditioning system ever created for a transit vehicle, with eight fans fitted on the air conditioning unit. As of October 2006, CAT had firm orders for another 40 of the type worth $29.8 million, these were delivered during late 2007. A further 40 had also been ordered for delivery in 2008, these will have longer bodies and a second staircase to speed loading and unloading. All these vehicles will be used for fixed-route operations, not for sightseeing operations.
Les Cars Rouges, a sightseeing company, ordered 16 open-top Enviro 500 for sightseeing operations in the USA, delivery of these buses started in early 2007. Eight of the Enviro 500 are destined for San Francisco, and the rest of them are destined for Washington D.C.
Community Transit put one Enviro 500 into service on August 1, 2007, the bus would be used on commuter routes between Seattle and various points in Snohomish County during its first year in operation.[4] Community Transit has put in an order for 23 additional buses, which will arrive in 2010.[5]
[edit] Enviro 500 with Volvo B9TL chassis
As of early 2008, Kowloon Motor Bus and Long Win Bus in Hong Kong and Dublin Bus of Ireland are operating buses with this combination. For more details, see Volvo B9TL.
[edit] References
- ^ Alexander Dennis - News: No stopping the bus as resurgent ADL steps up a gear for 2008
- ^ a b Alexander Dennis - News: Flying start as market leader wins £25M of new orders in first week of 2007
- ^ Double Decker Bus Trial SFMTA Fact Sheet
- ^ Community Transit: Double Decker Bus
- ^ KING5 News: Community Transit orders 23 double-decker buses
[edit] See also
[edit] Other Alexander Dennis bus products
[edit] Competitors
[edit] External links
- Product description in Alexander Dennis official website
- Fleet list of KMB's Enviro 500 (Euro III engine)
- Fleet list of KMB's Enviro 500 (Euro IV engine)
- Enviro 500 in Queensland
- Enviro 500 in Sydney
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