Alexander Dennis Enviro 500
Encyclopedia
The Alexander Dennis Enviro500 (previously known as the TransBus Enviro500) is a tri-axle double-decker bus
built by Alexander Dennis
(formerly by TransBus) in the United Kingdom
. It was unveiled in 2002 and is one of the Enviro-series bus models made by TransBus/Alexander Dennis.
chassis for Enviro500 (also known as Trident E500) was modified from Trident 3
. It can be fitted with Cummins
ISMe335 Euro III engine (later Cummins ISLe340 Euro IV/Euro V 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. Later Voith DIWA864.5 4-speed gearbox, ZF 6HP602 6-speed gearbox and Allison
B500R 6-speed gearbox became available and now they are the standard configurations.
Initially only the 12-metre (40 ft)-long version of the Enviro500 was built, but in 2007 Alexander Dennis announced the production of the 12.8-metre-long version, and an 11.3-metre-long variant followed in 2008.
Later Alexander Dennis developed the hybrid electric version of Enviro500, known as the Enviro500H, with GM-Allison's parallel hybrid drive system, it was unveiled in late 2008.
The Enviro500 bodywork is also available with Volvo B9TL
chassis.
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 facelifted version of Enviro500 body, first built in late 2003, have revised frontal and rear designs.
In 2011, Alexander Dennis unveiled the Enviro500 with new frontal design, which had the same front with the Enviro400.
The Enviro500 and is designed and built according to current Europe
an standards and the operating environment of Hong Kong
.
es for Kowloon Motor Bus
, with straight staircase and plug door
(only at the exit) fitted. All KMB's Enviro500 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 Enviro500, KMB became the launch customer by switching the last 20 of an order of 100 Dennis Trident 3 to the Enviro500 in 2002. Later in the same year, KMB placed a second order for a further 100 of the vehicles. The first Enviro500 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 Enviro500s, 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 Enviro500 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. The last one, a Euro IV-engined prototype, with fleet number ATEU1 (originally ATE257), has entered service on 24 May 2006. In 2009, it reemerged as a Euro V-engined bus.
In late 2005, KMB ordered 15 more buses which entered service in August 2006.
Later a batch of 9 buses with Euro IV engines was ordered for delivery in 2009, which entered service in mid-2009. One of them was fitted with luggage rack after body assembly. It was quickly followed by another batch of 46 buses for delivery in 2010, 20 of them were eventually diverted to Long Win Bus, and 26 buses entered service with KMB in 2010-2011.
A batch of 35 buses with Euro V engines was ordered for delivery in 2010-2011, like the previous batch, some of the buses were diverted to Long Win Bus.
registered three Enviro500 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.
A further batch of seven buses with Euro IV engines had been ordered for delivery in 2009. The first six buses entered service in mid-late 2009. The last one, which was fitted with coach seats, entered service in October 2009. These were followed by further five buses, with the first four being registered in December 2009; the last one, which was fitted with coach seats, entered service in April 2010. In 2010, Long Win Bus received twenty more Enviro500 buses with Euro IV engines.
A batch of 6 buses with Euro V engines was ordered for delivery in 2010-2011.
ordered 10 Enviro500s 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.
A further batch of 18 buses with Euro IV engines had been ordered for delivery in 2009, they entered service in 2009. They were followed by another 77 buses, they entered service in 2010-2011.
originally ordered 9 12-metre long Euro IV-engined Enviro500 buses in early 2007 for its Feeder Bus
service. 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.
Due to a railway merger between MTR
and KCR
in late-2007, they are now operated by MTR Corporation
for running MTR Feeder Bus (previously known as KCR Feeder Bus) routes.
Later a batch of 15 buses with Euro IV engines was ordered for delivery in 2009, they were first registered in April-August 2009. This was followed by another order for 9 buses.
ordered 18 Enviro500 buses with Euro IV engine in early 2007. 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, it finally entered service in June 2008.
In 2008 New World First Bus ordered twenty 11.3m-long buses with Euro IV engines for delivery in 2009. They entered service in July-October 2009. A further batch of twenty similar buses with Euro V engines entered service in early 2010.
In 2010, a batch of 24 12m-long buses with Euro V engines was ordered for delivery in 2010-2011. They entered service in January-May 2011.
In 2004, Alexander Dennis started to explore the North America
n market for its Enviro500. The American version of Enviro500 have modified bodies and redesigned fuel tanks, which enable the straight staircase to be moved forward. Alexander Dennis built two left hand drive Enviro500 (one 12m-long bus and one 12.8m-long bus) for demonstration in the United States
and Canada
.
Bus operators which had evaluated the Enviro500 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).
Alexander Dennis also built one 12-metre Enviro500 demonstrator for long-term loan. It was first loaned to Community Transit between 2007 and 2009 which put it into service on August 1, 2007, the bus was used on commuter routes between Seattle and various points in Snohomish County during its first year in operation. From September 2010, it was loaned to Strathcona County Transit
on a one-year lease for the operator's one-year-long double-decker pilot project. The pilot is part of an exploration of different high-capacity bus types to carry more passengers on the high-demand commuter routes, which are between Strathcona County and Edmonton
; an articulated bus is also being evaluated as an alternative and there is no commitment to put any Alexander Dennis model or any double-decker design into permanent service. This bus becomes the first double-decker to be used for regular transit service in Alberta
.
In late 2008, Alexander Dennis announced the assembly of the American version of Enviro500 by ElDorado National
of the United States.
ordered nine Enviro500 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. These were followed by another 26 which entered service in 2008; sixteen of them were allocated to Victoria and the other ten were allocated to Kelowna
. In 2009, BC Transit received one Enviro500H for evaluation.
GO Transit
, Toronto's regional transit authority, has 22 12.8-metre long Enviro500s. Twelve were purchased in a C$10.835 million deal and they were introduced in early 2008. Ten extra units entered service in early 2009.
OC Transpo
also purchased 3 Enviro500s for further testing, after two trials in 2006/2007. The first unit arrived in November 2008 and the city of Ottawa currently operates them on a variety of routes.
Gray Line New York
, owned by Coach USA
ordered 20 open-top Enviro500 for its sightseeing operations in New York
and put them into service in spring 2005, these were the first open-top Enviro500 built (another 13 would later be ordered). Gray Line also received three single-door Enviro500 in summer 2005 for operation in San Francisco.
Citizens Area Transit (now RTC Transit) of Las Vegas
had its first 50 Enviro500s 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 Enviro500s 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 41 of the type worth $29.8 million; these were delivered in late 2007. A further 40 had also been ordered for delivery in 2008; these were 12.8 meters long and had a second staircase to speed loading and unloading. All these vehicles were used for fixed-route operations, not for sightseeing operations.
Les Cars Rouges, a sightseeing company, ordered 16 open-top Enviro500 for sightseeing operations in the USA, delivery of these buses started in early 2007. Eight of the Enviro500 are destined for San Francisco, and the rest of them are destined for Washington D.C.
Community Transit put in an order for 23 12.8-meter-long buses for delivery in 2010 when the demonstrator was still on loan by the operator.
Unitrans
(University of California, Davis
) ordered two Enviro500 which were delivered in early 2010, these are the first batch of Enviro500s with the bodywork assembled by ElDorado National.
SLO Transit
ordered one Enviro500 which entered service in late 2010.
Hele-On Bus
introduced one 12.8m Enviro500 in the first half of 2011.
ordered a batch of 25 to add to its existing 3-axle Volvo B7L
/East Lancs Nordic
s. They were put into service between April and June 2009.
and Long Win Bus
in Hong Kong and Dublin Bus
of Ireland
are operating buses with this combination. For more details, see Volvo B9TL
.
Double-decker bus
A double-decker bus is a bus that has two storeys or 'decks'. Global usage of this type of bus is more common in outer touring than in its intra-urban transportion role. Double-decker buses are also commonly found in certain parts of Europe, Asia, and former British colonies and protectorates...
built by Alexander Dennis
Alexander Dennis
Alexander Dennis Limited is the largest bus builder in the United Kingdom. It incorporated the three last surviving bus manufacturers which started bus production before World War II: Dennis, Alexander and Plaxton.- History :Alexander Dennis was formed as TransBus on 1 January 2001, after the...
(formerly by TransBus) in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It was unveiled in 2002 and is one of the Enviro-series bus models made by TransBus/Alexander Dennis.
Design
The DennisDennis Specialist Vehicles
Dennis Specialist Vehicles is a major British coachbuilder and manufacturer of specialised commercial vehicles based in Guildford, England...
chassis for Enviro500 (also known as Trident E500) was modified from Trident 3
Dennis Trident 3
Dennis Trident 3 is the first low floor double-decker bus chassis built by Dennis in the United Kingdom, with a large number purchased by bus companies in Hong Kong, Singapore, the United States and Canada.-Design:...
. It can be fitted with Cummins
Cummins
Cummins Inc. is a Fortune 500 corporation that designs, manufactures, distributes and services engines and related technologies, including fuel systems, controls, air handling, filtration, emission control and electrical power generation systems...
ISMe335 Euro III engine (later Cummins ISLe340 Euro IV/Euro V engine which uses AdBlue
AdBlue
Diesel Exhaust Fluid is an aqueous urea solution used in Selective Catalytic Reduction to lower NOx concentration in the exhaust emissions from diesel engines...
to reduce emission of nitrogen oxides through selective catalytic reduction
Selective catalytic reduction
Selective catalytic reduction is a means of converting nitrogen oxides, also referred to as with the aid of a catalyst into diatomic nitrogen , , and water, . A gaseous reductant, typically anhydrous ammonia, aqueous ammonia or urea, is added to a stream of flue or exhaust gas and is absorbed...
process), or ISM-330 engine for the buses delivered to North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, and coupled to Voith
Voith
The Voith GmbH, which is headquartered in Germany, is a family-run corporation in the mechanical engineering sector with worldwide operations....
DIWA864.3E 4-speed or ZF
ZF Friedrichshafen
ZF Friedrichshafen AG, also known as ZF Group, and commonly abbreviated to ZF, is a German public company headquartered in Friedrichshafen, in the south-west German region of Baden-Württemberg....
5HP602 5-speed gearbox. Later Voith DIWA864.5 4-speed gearbox, ZF 6HP602 6-speed gearbox and Allison
Allison Transmission
Allison Transmission is an American manufacturer of commercial duty automatic transmissions and hybrid propulsion systems. Allison products are specified by over 250 of the world’s leading vehicle manufacturers and are used in many market sectors including bus, refuse, fire, construction,...
B500R 6-speed gearbox became available and now they are the standard configurations.
Initially only the 12-metre (40 ft)-long version of the Enviro500 was built, but in 2007 Alexander Dennis announced the production of the 12.8-metre-long version, and an 11.3-metre-long variant followed in 2008.
Later Alexander Dennis developed the hybrid electric version of Enviro500, known as the Enviro500H, with GM-Allison's parallel hybrid drive system, it was unveiled in late 2008.
The Enviro500 bodywork is also available with Volvo B9TL
Volvo B9TL
The Volvo B9TL is a low-floor double-decker bus built by Volvo Buses since 2002. It superseded the older Volvo B10TL and the Volvo B7TL.-Chassis:...
chassis.
External appearance
The body of the Enviro500 was based on the original style of the single-deck Enviro300, and the upper-deck frontal design was similar to the design used on the Plaxton PresidentPlaxton President
The Plaxton President was a double-decker bus body built at Northern Counties plant in Wigan, England and branded as a Plaxton product for its main production run. It was unveiled in 1997 and built between 1999 and 2005. When Plaxton became part of TransBus International, the body was sold under...
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
Kowloon Motor Bus
The Kowloon Motor Bus Company Limited , a company of the Transport International Holdings Limited, is the largest franchised bus operators in Hong Kong, and one of the largest privately owned public bus operators in the world...
on time.
- The width of the bus is 2550 mm (100.3 inches), exceeded the limit of 2500 mm (98.4 inches). The width of 2550 mm, 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 KMBKowloon Motor BusThe Kowloon Motor Bus Company Limited , a company of the Transport International Holdings Limited, is the largest franchised bus operators in Hong Kong, and one of the largest privately owned public bus operators in the world...
.
The facelifted version of Enviro500 body, first built in late 2003, have revised frontal and rear designs.
In 2011, Alexander Dennis unveiled the Enviro500 with new frontal design, which had the same front with the Enviro400.
Hong Kong
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an standards and the operating environment of Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
.
Kowloon Motor Bus
The Enviro500 is the first model of second-generation low-floor busLow-floor bus
A low-floor bus is a bus that has no steps between one or more entrances and part or all of the passenger cabin. Being low floor improves the accessibility of the bus for the public, particularly the elderly or infirm, or those with push chairs, and increasingly, those in wheelchairs.In the modern...
es for Kowloon Motor Bus
Kowloon Motor Bus
The Kowloon Motor Bus Company Limited , a company of the Transport International Holdings Limited, is the largest franchised bus operators in Hong Kong, and one of the largest privately owned public bus operators in the world...
, with straight staircase and plug door
Plug door
A plug door is a door designed to seal itself by taking advantage of pressure difference on its two sides and is typically used on pressurised aircraft...
(only at the exit) fitted. All KMB's Enviro500 buses had a bronze band added to the champagne livery
Livery
A livery is a uniform, insignia or symbol adorning, in a non-military context, a person, an object or a vehicle that denotes a relationship between the wearer of the livery and an individual or corporate body. Often, elements of the heraldry relating to the individual or corporate body feature in...
to differentiate them from the first-generation low-floor buses.
When TransBus announced the development of the Enviro500, KMB became the launch customer by switching the last 20 of an order of 100 Dennis Trident 3 to the Enviro500 in 2002. Later in the same year, KMB placed a second order for a further 100 of the vehicles. The first Enviro500 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 Enviro500s, 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
Long Win Bus
Long Win Bus Company Limited provides bus service to northern Lantau Island and the Hong Kong International Airport...
.
Due to the commencement of the KCR West Rail
KCR West Rail
The West Rail Line is one of the MTR lines in Hong Kong. It was formerly known as the KCR West Rail . It starts at Hung Hom Station in Yau Tsim Mong District and ends at Tuen Mun Station in Tuen Mun...
in late 2003 and KCR Ma On Shan Rail
KCR Ma On Shan Rail
The Ma On Shan Line is a branch line of the East Rail Line in Hong Kong. Originally, the railway was operated by Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation...
in late 2004, Transport Department of Hong Kong requested KMB to reduce its fleet size, so the registration of these four batches of KMB Enviro500 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. The last one, a Euro IV-engined prototype, with fleet number ATEU1 (originally ATE257), has entered service on 24 May 2006. In 2009, it reemerged as a Euro V-engined bus.
In late 2005, KMB ordered 15 more buses which entered service in August 2006.
Later a batch of 9 buses with Euro IV engines was ordered for delivery in 2009, which entered service in mid-2009. One of them was fitted with luggage rack after body assembly. It was quickly followed by another batch of 46 buses for delivery in 2010, 20 of them were eventually diverted to Long Win Bus, and 26 buses entered service with KMB in 2010-2011.
A batch of 35 buses with Euro V engines was ordered for delivery in 2010-2011, like the previous batch, some of the buses were diverted to Long Win Bus.
Early Withdrawal
In July 2008, one of KMB's Enviro500 [Fleet number ATE180 (LN5481)] was written off after being burnt out in KMB's depot in Tin Shui Wai on 31 March 2008.Long Win Bus
Long Win BusLong Win Bus
Long Win Bus Company Limited provides bus service to northern Lantau Island and the Hong Kong International Airport...
registered three Enviro500 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
Hong Kong Disneyland
Hong Kong Disneyland is located on reclaimed land in Penny's Bay, Lantau Island. It is the first theme park located inside the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort and is owned and managed by the Hong Kong International Theme Parks. The park opened to visitors on 12 September 2005...
.
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.
A further batch of seven buses with Euro IV engines had been ordered for delivery in 2009. The first six buses entered service in mid-late 2009. The last one, which was fitted with coach seats, entered service in October 2009. These were followed by further five buses, with the first four being registered in December 2009; the last one, which was fitted with coach seats, entered service in April 2010. In 2010, Long Win Bus received twenty more Enviro500 buses with Euro IV engines.
A batch of 6 buses with Euro V engines was ordered for delivery in 2010-2011.
Citybus
CitybusCitybus (Hong Kong)
Citybus Limited is one of the three major bus operators in Hong Kong. It provides both franchised and non-franchised bus service. The franchised route network serves mainly Hong Kong Island, cross-harbour routes , Ocean Park, North Lantau and Hong Kong International Airport...
ordered 10 Enviro500s 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.
A further batch of 18 buses with Euro IV engines had been ordered for delivery in 2009, they entered service in 2009. They were followed by another 77 buses, they entered service in 2010-2011.
MTR
Kowloon-Canton Railway CorporationKowloon-Canton Railway Corporation
The Kowloon–Canton Railway Corporation was established in 1982 under the Kowloon–Canton Railway Corporation Ordinance for the purposes of operating the Kowloon–Canton Railway , and to construct and operate other new railways...
originally ordered 9 12-metre long Euro IV-engined Enviro500 buses in early 2007 for its Feeder Bus
KCR Feeder Bus
The MTR Corporation is a Hong Kong railway company which also operates the MTR Bus and MTR Feeder Bus routes in order to complement its rail systems...
service. 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.
Due to a railway merger between MTR
MTR
Mass Transit Railway is the rapid transit railway system in Hong Kong. Originally opened in 1979, the system now includes 211.6 km of rail with 155 stations, including 86 railway stations and 69 light rail stops...
and KCR
Kowloon-Canton Railway
The Kowloon–Canton Railway refers to a railway network in Hong Kong which is now combined with the MTR railway system, comprising rapid transit services, a light rail system and feeder bus routes within Hong Kong, and intercity passenger and freight train services to the rest of China...
in late-2007, they are now operated by MTR Corporation
MTR Corporation
MTR Corporation Limited is a company listed on the Hong Kong Exchange and included in the Hang Seng Index. MTR owns and runs the Hong Kong MTR metro system, and is also a major property developer and landlord in Hong Kong...
for running MTR Feeder Bus (previously known as KCR Feeder Bus) routes.
Later a batch of 15 buses with Euro IV engines was ordered for delivery in 2009, they were first registered in April-August 2009. This was followed by another order for 9 buses.
New World First Bus
New World First BusNew World First Bus
New World First Bus Services Limited , abbreviated as First Bus and "NWFB", is the third largest public bus operator in Hong Kong.NWFB was established in 1998, taking over China Motor Bus's franchise on 1 September 1998 to provide bus services on Hong Kong Island together with Citybus...
ordered 18 Enviro500 buses with Euro IV engine in early 2007. 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, it finally entered service in June 2008.
In 2008 New World First Bus ordered twenty 11.3m-long buses with Euro IV engines for delivery in 2009. They entered service in July-October 2009. A further batch of twenty similar buses with Euro V engines entered service in early 2010.
In 2010, a batch of 24 12m-long buses with Euro V engines was ordered for delivery in 2010-2011. They entered service in January-May 2011.
CLP Group
CLP Group ordered 5 Enviro500 buses with Euro IV engines for its staff shuttle bus service in 2008. The specification is similar with Citybus's Enviro500, but without wheelchair place and standees. They entered service in June 2009.North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
n market for its Enviro500. The American version of Enviro500 have modified bodies and redesigned fuel tanks, which enable the straight staircase to be moved forward. Alexander Dennis built two left hand drive Enviro500 (one 12m-long bus and one 12.8m-long bus) for demonstration in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Bus operators which had evaluated the Enviro500 include Community Transit of Snohomish County, Washington
Snohomish County, Washington
Snohomish County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. It is named after the Snohomish tribe. Since 2000, the county's population has grown from 606,024 to 713,335 residents , making it one of the fastest-growing in the state, ranking third in overall population after King and...
(December 2005), Unitrans
Unitrans
Unitrans is the name for the transit system which operates in Davis, California. It takes its name from an abbreviation of the words "University Transport". Excepting several managerial and maintenance positions, Unitrans is managed and operated entirely by students of the University of...
of Davis
Davis, California
Davis is a city in Yolo County, California, United States. It is part of the Sacramento–Arden-Arcade–Roseville Metropolitan Statistical Area...
(January 2006, two weeks), OC Transpo
OC Transpo
OC Transpo is the urban transit service of the City of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. An integrated hub-and-spoke system of services is available consisting of: regular buses travelling on fixed routes in mixed traffic, typical of most urban transit systems; a bus rapid transit system — a high...
of Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
(June 28 to July 12, 2006 and February 2007) and the San Francisco Municipal Railway
San Francisco Municipal Railway
The San Francisco Municipal Railway is the public transit system for the city and county of San Francisco, California. In 2006, it served with an operating budget of about $700 million...
of San Francisco (November 2007 to January 2008).
Alexander Dennis also built one 12-metre Enviro500 demonstrator for long-term loan. It was first loaned to Community Transit between 2007 and 2009 which put it into service on August 1, 2007, the bus was used on commuter routes between Seattle and various points in Snohomish County during its first year in operation. From September 2010, it was loaned to Strathcona County Transit
Strathcona County Transit
Strathcona County Transit provides local, commuter and school bus services to the community of Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada, which is situated just east of Edmonton in Strathcona County....
on a one-year lease for the operator's one-year-long double-decker pilot project. The pilot is part of an exploration of different high-capacity bus types to carry more passengers on the high-demand commuter routes, which are between Strathcona County and Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
; an articulated bus is also being evaluated as an alternative and there is no commitment to put any Alexander Dennis model or any double-decker design into permanent service. This bus becomes the first double-decker to be used for regular transit service in Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
.
In late 2008, Alexander Dennis announced the assembly of the American version of Enviro500 by ElDorado National
ElDorado National
ElDorado National is a bus manufacturer owned by Thor Industries. Heavy-duty buses are built in Riverside, California, and cutaway buses and mobility vans are built in Salina, Kansas.-Products:* Aerotech and similar lines of cutaway buses...
of the United States.
Canada
BC TransitBC Transit
BC Transit is a provincial crown agency responsible for coordinating the delivery of public transportation within British Columbia, Canada, outside of Greater Vancouver...
ordered nine Enviro500 which were allocated to Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...
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. These were followed by another 26 which entered service in 2008; sixteen of them were allocated to Victoria and the other ten were allocated to Kelowna
Kelowna
Kelowna is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley, in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. Its name derives from a Okanagan language term for "grizzly bear"...
. In 2009, BC Transit received one Enviro500H for evaluation.
GO Transit
GO Transit
GO Transit is an inter-regional public transit system in Southern Ontario, Canada. It primarily serves the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area conurbation, with operations extending to several communities beyond the GTHA proper in the Greater Golden Horseshoe...
, Toronto's regional transit authority, has 22 12.8-metre long Enviro500s. Twelve were purchased in a C$10.835 million deal and they were introduced in early 2008. Ten extra units entered service in early 2009.
OC Transpo
OC Transpo
OC Transpo is the urban transit service of the City of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. An integrated hub-and-spoke system of services is available consisting of: regular buses travelling on fixed routes in mixed traffic, typical of most urban transit systems; a bus rapid transit system — a high...
also purchased 3 Enviro500s for further testing, after two trials in 2006/2007. The first unit arrived in November 2008 and the city of Ottawa currently operates them on a variety of routes.
United States
Gray Line Worldwide
Gray Line Worldwide operates local sightseeing tours across the world using trolley coaches, double-deckers and standard single deck coaches. It also offers charter services, airport transfers and convention services....
, owned by Coach USA
Coach USA
Coach USA LLC is a holding company for various American transportation service providers providing scheduled intercity bus service, local and commuter bus transit, city sightseeing, tour, yellow school bus, and charter bus service...
ordered 20 open-top Enviro500 for its sightseeing operations in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and put them into service in spring 2005, these were the first open-top Enviro500 built (another 13 would later be ordered). Gray Line also received three single-door Enviro500 in summer 2005 for operation in San Francisco.
Citizens Area Transit (now RTC Transit) of Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
had its first 50 Enviro500s entered service by October 2005. The service, marketed as "The Deuce
The Deuce
The Deuce is the name of the double-decker bus line serving Las Vegas operated by RTC Transit. These buses went into service on October 27, 2005...
", 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 Enviro500s 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 41 of the type worth $29.8 million; these were delivered in late 2007. A further 40 had also been ordered for delivery in 2008; these were 12.8 meters long and had a second staircase to speed loading and unloading. All these vehicles were used for fixed-route operations, not for sightseeing operations.
Les Cars Rouges, a sightseeing company, ordered 16 open-top Enviro500 for sightseeing operations in the USA, delivery of these buses started in early 2007. Eight of the Enviro500 are destined for San Francisco, and the rest of them are destined for Washington D.C.
Community Transit put in an order for 23 12.8-meter-long buses for delivery in 2010 when the demonstrator was still on loan by the operator.
Unitrans
Unitrans
Unitrans is the name for the transit system which operates in Davis, California. It takes its name from an abbreviation of the words "University Transport". Excepting several managerial and maintenance positions, Unitrans is managed and operated entirely by students of the University of...
(University of California, Davis
University of California, Davis
The University of California, Davis is a public teaching and research university established in 1905 and located in Davis, California, USA. Spanning over , the campus is the largest within the University of California system and third largest by enrollment...
) ordered two Enviro500 which were delivered in early 2010, these are the first batch of Enviro500s with the bodywork assembled by ElDorado National.
SLO Transit
SLO Transit
SLO Transit is the provider of local public mass transportation in the city of San Luis Obispo, California. It is complemented by the intercity service of the San Luis Obispo Regional Transit Authority...
ordered one Enviro500 which entered service in late 2010.
Hele-On Bus
Hele-On Bus
The Hele-On Bus, officially known as the Hawaii County Mass Transit Agency, is the primary provider of mass transportation in Hawaii County, Hawaii....
introduced one 12.8m Enviro500 in the first half of 2011.
United Kingdom
In August 2008, First GlasgowFirst Glasgow
First Glasgow is the largest bus company serving the Greater Glasgow area in, Scotland. It forms part of FirstGroup, a company operating transport services across the British Isles and in North America...
ordered a batch of 25 to add to its existing 3-axle Volvo B7L
Volvo B7L
Volvo B7L was a low floor citybus chassis with a rear engine mounted vertically on the left of the rear overhang, it was built as a replacement for the Volvo B10L...
/East Lancs Nordic
East Lancs Nordic
The East Lancs Nordic is a type of double-decker bus body built by East Lancashire Coachbuilders. It is built on tri-axle 12 metre Volvo B7L and later tri-axle Volvo B9TL chassis, and have around 73 seats....
s. They were put into service between April and June 2009.
Enviro500 bodywork on Volvo B9TL chassis
As of early 2009, Kowloon Motor BusKowloon Motor Bus
The Kowloon Motor Bus Company Limited , a company of the Transport International Holdings Limited, is the largest franchised bus operators in Hong Kong, and one of the largest privately owned public bus operators in the world...
and Long Win Bus
Long Win Bus
Long Win Bus Company Limited provides bus service to northern Lantau Island and the Hong Kong International Airport...
in Hong Kong and Dublin Bus
Dublin Bus
Dublin Bus is a public transport operator in Ireland. It operates an extensive bus network of 172 radial, cross-city and peripheral routes and 18 night routes in the city of Dublin and the Greater Dublin Area. The company, established in 1987, is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann which is...
of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
are operating buses with this combination. For more details, see Volvo B9TL
Volvo B9TL
The Volvo B9TL is a low-floor double-decker bus built by Volvo Buses since 2002. It superseded the older Volvo B10TL and the Volvo B7TL.-Chassis:...
.