Brighton & Hove / Metrobus Discussion

[brightonbususe]

Hi all,

First post here. Probably also a long one. I'm a designer and have always been fascinated by Brighton & Hove Buses' branding. I remember when they first introduced the Metro branding onto their most popular routes by changing the red on their BH2 (diagonal stripe) livery for the route colour. It was a great initiative but to a certain extent degraded their red and cream branding.

I was over the moon when they introduced the BH3 livery, the now-familiar swoosh. It took the recognisable elements of BH2 and modernised them. It also elegantly fixed the problem of multicoloured buses by instead replacing the black part of the swoosh with the colour for the Metro route as an accent.

This rebrand was a total masterclass, one that I have held high as a shining example of a rebrand done right. The logo, the messaging, the livery... it all worked beautifully, especially when you see it on buses like the Geminis where the swoosh is so organic and fits perfectly around the front of the bus.

But then in recent years, they have really lost their way and damaged the brand. It's hard to say what does a B&H bus look like anymore.

The initial Coaster and Regency route branding was OK, then they completely diverged from the BH3/4 swoosh - and they're still updating these so we have several versions of both Coaster and Regency running on the same routes. Then they introduced the Live & Breathe livery (for the hybrid buses) which make up a huge proportion of their fleet. Then you also have all the special wrapped buses. All of this really degraded their brand. The city is full of these buses with different designs, different colours, no continuity of style.

However, almost every livery they created is an absolute work of art.

I love the Live & Breathe buses, such a fun design. The new harlequin Regency livery is great. The special buses like the Pride one and the street art one are brilliant. And the iconic swoosh is still one of the best liveries out there - totally timeless.

And now onto BH5, the new rebrand.

I don't like the logo. I promise I'm not someone who always says that about new logos, but it's too busy and just doesn't fit as well onto the buses. I see what they were trying to do, but it looks like it was a classic example of design by committee.

The new livery... um... exists. I love the colours, really vibrant. It's a shame to see the classic B&H red/cream go, but I'm not too sentimental about it. But the livery is just mediocrity. The swoosh is really unimaginative and basic, the multicolour 'icons' at the back don't really compliment the new brand colours, the detailing on the back of the bus is horrible, too much going on. It's so corporate and soulless, it could be any bus company in the UK. No clever messaging, no distinctive shapes, just nothing in particular. Does anyone know who did the new livery? I can't imagine it was Ray Stenning/Best Impressions again.

I'm excited for a bit of continuity of style. It will be nice to finally see (maybe?) just the three main liveries; BH5, Regency and Coaster. It's just a shame we're going to be stuck with the most mediocre, boring livery they've ever created.

I'm really surprised they didn't just expand the whole Live & Breathe livery from their hybrid buses onto the whole fleet. It's a fun, vibrant, distinctive livery with clever messaging and seems unapologetically Brighton and Hove. They've already done the hard work with this one, it's on 50+ buses already so I don't know why they had to come up with a Poundland version of it with slightly different colours.

I'm absolutely not against rebrands, but it's such a downgrade and by not using the Live & Breathe livery it makes the problem of too many liveries even worse, at least in the short-to-medium term.

Sorry for the long post.

 

[MotCO]

Hi all,

First post here. Probably also a long one. I'm a designer and have always been fascinated by Brighton & Hove Buses' branding. I remember when they first introduced the Metro branding onto their most popular routes by changing the red on their BH2 (diagonal stripe) livery for the route colour. It was a great initiative but to a certain extent degraded their red and cream branding.

I was over the moon when they introduced the BH3 livery, the now-familiar swoosh. It took the recognisable elements of BH2 and modernised them. It also elegantly fixed the problem of multicoloured buses by instead replacing the black part of the swoosh with the colour for the Metro route as an accent.

This rebrand was a total masterclass, one that I have held high as a shining example of a rebrand done right. The logo, the messaging, the livery... it all worked beautifully, especially when you see it on buses like the Geminis where the swoosh is so organic and fits perfectly around the front of the bus.

But then in recent years, they have really lost their way and damaged the brand. It's hard to say what does a B&H bus look like anymore.

The initial Coaster and Regency route branding was OK, then they completely diverged from the BH3/4 swoosh - and they're still updating these so we have several versions of both Coaster and Regency running on the same routes. Then they introduced the Live & Breathe livery (for the hybrid buses) which make up a huge proportion of their fleet. Then you also have all the special wrapped buses. All of this really degraded their brand. The city is full of these buses with different designs, different colours, no continuity of style.

However, almost every livery they created is an absolute work of art.

I love the Live & Breathe buses, such a fun design. The new harlequin Regency livery is great. The special buses like the Pride one and the street art one are brilliant. And the iconic swoosh is still one of the best liveries out there - totally timeless.

And now onto BH5, the new rebrand.

I don't like the logo. I promise I'm not someone who always says that about new logos, but it's too busy and just doesn't fit as well onto the buses. I see what they were trying to do, but it looks like it was a classic example of design by committee.

The new livery... um... exists. I love the colours, really vibrant. It's a shame to see the classic B&H red/cream go, but I'm not too sentimental about it. But the livery is just mediocrity. The swoosh is really unimaginative and basic, the multicolour 'icons' at the back don't really compliment the new brand colours, the detailing on the back of the bus is horrible, too much going on. It's so corporate and soulless, it could be any bus company in the UK. No clever messaging, no distinctive shapes, just nothing in particular. Does anyone know who did the new livery? I can't imagine it was Ray Stenning/Best Impressions again.

I'm excited for a bit of continuity of style. It will be nice to finally see (maybe?) just the three main liveries; BH5, Regency and Coaster. It's just a shame we're going to be stuck with the most mediocre, boring livery they've ever created.

I'm really surprised they didn't just expand the whole Live & Breathe livery from their hybrid buses onto the whole fleet. It's a fun, vibrant, distinctive livery with clever messaging and seems unapologetically Brighton and Hove. They've already done the hard work with this one, it's on 50+ buses already so I don't know why they had to come up with a Poundland version of it with slightly different colours.

I'm absolutely not against rebrands, but it's such a downgrade and by not using the Live & Breathe livery it makes the problem of too many liveries even worse, at least in the short-to-medium term.

Sorry for the long post.

Welcome to the Forum! No need to apologise for a long post - all views are welcomed, and you gave a professional view of the various liveries.

 

[Sussexwatch]

Hi all,

First post here. Probably also a long one. I'm a designer and have always been fascinated by Brighton & Hove Buses' branding. I remember when they first introduced the Metro branding onto their most popular routes by changing the red on their BH2 (diagonal stripe) livery for the route colour. It was a great initiative but to a certain extent degraded their red and cream branding.

I was over the moon when they introduced the BH3 livery, the now-familiar swoosh. It took the recognisable elements of BH2 and modernised them. It also elegantly fixed the problem of multicoloured buses by instead replacing the black part of the swoosh with the colour for the Metro route as an accent.

This rebrand was a total masterclass, one that I have held high as a shining example of a rebrand done right. The logo, the messaging, the livery... it all worked beautifully, especially when you see it on buses like the Geminis where the swoosh is so organic and fits perfectly around the front of the bus.

But then in recent years, they have really lost their way and damaged the brand. It's hard to say what does a B&H bus look like anymore.

The initial Coaster and Regency route branding was OK, then they completely diverged from the BH3/4 swoosh - and they're still updating these so we have several versions of both Coaster and Regency running on the same routes. Then they introduced the Live & Breathe livery (for the hybrid buses) which make up a huge proportion of their fleet. Then you also have all the special wrapped buses. All of this really degraded their brand. The city is full of these buses with different designs, different colours, no continuity of style.

However, almost every livery they created is an absolute work of art.

I love the Live & Breathe buses, such a fun design. The new harlequin Regency livery is great. The special buses like the Pride one and the street art one are brilliant. And the iconic swoosh is still one of the best liveries out there - totally timeless.

And now onto BH5, the new rebrand.

I don't like the logo. I promise I'm not someone who always says that about new logos, but it's too busy and just doesn't fit as well onto the buses. I see what they were trying to do, but it looks like it was a classic example of design by committee.

The new livery... um... exists. I love the colours, really vibrant. It's a shame to see the classic B&H red/cream go, but I'm not too sentimental about it. But the livery is just mediocrity. The swoosh is really unimaginative and basic, the multicolour 'icons' at the back don't really compliment the new brand colours, the detailing on the back of the bus is horrible, too much going on. It's so corporate and soulless, it could be any bus company in the UK. No clever messaging, no distinctive shapes, just nothing in particular. Does anyone know who did the new livery? I can't imagine it was Ray Stenning/Best Impressions again.

I'm excited for a bit of continuity of style. It will be nice to finally see (maybe?) just the three main liveries; BH5, Regency and Coaster. It's just a shame we're going to be stuck with the most mediocre, boring livery they've ever created.

I'm really surprised they didn't just expand the whole Live & Breathe livery from their hybrid buses onto the whole fleet. It's a fun, vibrant, distinctive livery with clever messaging and seems unapologetically Brighton and Hove. They've already done the hard work with this one, it's on 50+ buses already so I don't know why they had to come up with a Poundland version of it with slightly different colours.

I'm absolutely not against rebrands, but it's such a downgrade and by not using the Live & Breathe livery it makes the problem of too many liveries even worse, at least in the short-to-medium term.

Sorry for the long post.

As a Brighton resident and regular bus user I agree with much of this. Like many, I regret the demise of the red and cream livery, the BH3 style is now 21 years old and still looks modern and stylish to me. I think the new livery is meant to be a bolder version of the Live and Breath livery which was OK but too pale and a bit bland in my view. It was based on the colour of the seafront railings.

I do like the new Coaster livery though, which retains green and blue. The first examples have entered service this week and they look really smart. A feature of all the new liveries is that they don't use route numbers on branding, which is just as well as far too many route branded buses appear on wrong routes and even Roger French wasn't able to stop it happening in his days.

 

[MasterSpenny]

According to buslistsontheweb.co.uk, approximately more of the Enviro 400 MMCs fleet details have been identified.

Fleet Number	Registration
702	YY73THG
703	YY73THK
704	YY73THN
705	YY73TKN
706	YY73TKO
707	YY73TKT
708	YY73TKU
709	YY73TKV
710	YY73TKX
711	YY73TKZ
712	YY73TLF
713	YY73TLJ
714	YY73TLK
715	YY73TLN
716	YY73TLO
717	YY73TLU
718	YY73TLV
719	YY73TLX
720	YY73TLZ
721	YY73TMO
722	YY73TMU
723	YY73TMV
724	YY73TMX
725	YY73TMZ
726	YY73TNE

Looks like some of this is not true, as buslistsontheweb.co.uk now gives some of the 73’s as 24 plates, and now gives 727 and 729-38 as well.

Fleet Number	Registration Plate
704	YX24MMF
710	YX24MMJ
705	YX24MMK
713	YX24MMU
706	YX24MOA
715	YX24MOF
718	YX24MOU
716	YX24MOV
720	YX24MPE
722	YX24MPF
725	YX24MPO
724	YX24MPU
719	YX24MPV
726	YX24MPY
723	YX24MPZ
727	YX24MRO
728	YX24MRU
729	YX24MRV
730	YX24MRY
731	YX24MSO
732	YX24MSU
733	YX24MSV
734	YX24MSY
735	YX24MTE
736	YX24MTF
737	YX24MTJ
738	YX24MTK

 

[Murray J]

Looks like some of this is not true, as buslistsontheweb.co.uk now gives some of the 73’s as 24 plates, and now gives 727 and 729-38 as well.

Fleet Number	Registration Plate
704	YX24MMF
710	YX24MMJ
705	YX24MMK
713	YX24MMU
706	YX24MOA
715	YX24MOF
718	YX24MOU
716	YX24MOV
720	YX24MPE
722	YX24MPF
725	YX24MPO
724	YX24MPU
719	YX24MPV
726	YX24MPY
723	YX24MPZ
727	YX24MRO
728	YX24MRU
729	YX24MRV
730	YX24MRY
731	YX24MSO
732	YX24MSU
733	YX24MSV
734	YX24MSY
735	YX24MTE
736	YX24MTF
737	YX24MTJ
738	YX24MTK

those are all the ones that haven't been delivered yet, presumably going to be re-registered before delivery or entry into service.

 

[MotCO]

Looks like some of this is not true, as buslistsontheweb.co.uk now gives some of the 73’s as 24 plates, and now gives 727 and 729-38 as well.

Fleet Number	Registration Plate
704	YX24MMF
710	YX24MMJ
705	YX24MMK
713	YX24MMU
706	YX24MOA
715	YX24MOF
718	YX24MOU
716	YX24MOV
720	YX24MPE
722	YX24MPF
725	YX24MPO
724	YX24MPU
719	YX24MPV
726	YX24MPY
723	YX24MPZ
727	YX24MRO
728	YX24MRU
729	YX24MRV
730	YX24MRY
731	YX24MSO
732	YX24MSU
733	YX24MSV
734	YX24MSY
735	YX24MTE
736	YX24MTF
737	YX24MTJ
738	YX24MTK

Do we know what is happening to the buses displaced by this new intake? Will they filter down and the oldest buses disposed of? Will any find their way to Metrobus, or even Southdown to replace the remaining Presidents?

 

[Sussexwatch]

Do we know what is happening to the buses displaced by this new intake? Will they filter down and the oldest buses disposed of? Will any find their way to Metrobus, or even Southdown to replace the remaining Presidents?

I understand all the 11.5 metre Coaster branded Streetdecks are going to Lewes Road, primarily for the 25 where their high capacity will be useful. They will replace all remaining Scanias, not sure if any will get transferred to Metrobus or Southdown.

 

[MotCO]

I understand all the 11.5 metre Coaster branded Streetdecks are going to Lewes Road, primarily for the 25 where their high capacity will be useful. They will replace all remaining Scanias, not sure if any will get transferred to Metrobus or Southdown.

Are the Scanias Omnicities or Omnideckers?

 

[LAIRA]

Are the Scanias Omnicities or Omnideckers?

7 Scanias expected in Plymouth very soon.

 

[Sussexwatch]

Are the Scanias Omnicities or Omnideckers?

Omnidekkas, the B&H OmniCities all went to Metrobus a few years ago

 

[Murray J]

7 Scanias expected in Plymouth very soon.

Also wouldn't be entirely surprised to see a few head to Copthorne in the short-term. All the B7TLs should be getting replaced sometime this year but the ex-London B7TLs are knackered and replacement could still be a few months away, assuming they don't fail like 2 recently withdrawn examples at Copthorne.

 

[Hophead]

If there was any hydrogen at Crawley, there would already have been a withdrawal and cascade in the single-deck fleet. Bustimes indicates that just one Hydroliner (of 20) was operating today and that's already gone home for the night.

 

[Edvid]

If there was any hydrogen at Crawley, there would already have been a withdrawal and cascade in the single-deck fleet. Bustimes indicates that just one Hydroliner (of 20) was operating today and that's already gone home for the night.

No more than half of the Hydroliners are out on a given day, it seems; in addition 6051/56 haven't tracked (off road, presumably) for well over half a year. AFAICT there are two reasons for this:

* Longstanding hydrogen production/supply issues - this is hampering several hydrogen fuel-cell bus fleets in the UK at present (outlined on a recent ZEBRA 2 thread post). Even the Metroline 7 in London has the occasional off-day in this respect.
* The HSE are still yet to authorise the permanent fuelling facility (see Bus & Coach Buyer article). Go-Ahead made the relevant application for it 24 months ago; they say the interval between submission and HSE approval usually lasts 12 months.

HSE delays Fastway hydrogen fleet by two years​

Posted by markwilliams on Thu 7th March 2024 - 09:39AM | No Comments

Two thirds of the flagship hydrogen fleet launched last summer by Go-Ahead on Brighton & Hove’s Fastway services has been grounded by red tape.

The fleet of 20 Wrights Hydroliner Kite single-decks were heralded as the ZE future, offering greater range than battery-electric buses, but the liquid hydrogen infrastructure already built cannot be operated until approved by the Health & Safety Executive, which has sat on the application for two years.

“We are currently able to run a proportion of our hydrogen fleet on the Fastway services, normally about 7 or 8 on a daily basis,” said a Ed Wills, Managing Director of Brighton & Buses and Metrobus. “However, all 20 hydrogen buses will not be able to operate until we are given sign-off by the Healthy & Safety Executive (HSE) to use the liquid hydrogen refuelling system that is at the depot.

“The technology is in place and ready to go but the HSE have yet to provide regulatory approval and in turn are holding back the full environmental benefits of this project to deliver zero emission services in Crawley using entirely green hydrogen.

Will added: “Our application was submitted for consideration in March 2022 and typically there is a 12-month process. This means we’re left the temporary solution of transporting in hydrogen and refuelling buses from a mobile solution.

“If the UK is serious about its decarbonisation targets we need a better appreciation that alternative fuels will be required and while of course this needs to be done safely, the HSE need to be able to better support the transition or we will be stuck using diesel for decades to come.”

Bus & Coach Buyer also believes that half of Merseyside’s fleet of fuel-cell buses is idle, but we await conformation of the reasons.

 

[Edvid]

Well, earlier this week the HSE sent a letter to the planning authority (Crawley Borough Council) advising against the granting of Hazardous Substances Consent (and therefore use of the permanent facility) on safety grounds.

The council can still grant consent if they wish, but the application may then be subject to call-in by the DLUHC on request of the HSE.

Either way, this relates to 97 Hydroliners in all - the existing 20, another 34 ordered for Surrey routes and 43 more possibly set to be funded through ZEBRA 2.

The relevant planning ref is CR/2022/0281/HAZ, alternatively start here if the direct link doesn't work. Letters from the HSE and other statutory consultees are on the Supporting Documents tab.

 

[JonathanH]

Brighton & Hove Scania OmniDekka YN07UOG seen working the 4 in Crawley earlier today. Similar YN57FYB also seems to be operating for Metrobus.

 

[Park47515]

Well, earlier this week the HSE sent a letter to the planning authority (Crawley Borough Council) advising against the granting of Hazardous Substances Consent (and therefore use of the permanent facility) on safety grounds.

The council can still grant consent if they wish, but the application may then be subject to call-in by the DLUHC on request of the HSE.

Either way, this relates to 97 Hydroliners in all - the existing 20, another 34 ordered for Surrey routes and 43 more possibly set to be funded through ZEBRA 2.

The relevant planning ref is CR/2022/0281/HAZ, alternatively start here if the direct link doesn't work. Letters from the HSE and other statutory consultees are on the Supporting Documents tab.

Presumably this is a reason why West Sussex 's/Metrobus ZEBRA 2 funding is conditional?

 

[MotCO]

Well, earlier this week the HSE sent a letter to the planning authority (Crawley Borough Council) advising against the granting of Hazardous Substances Consent (and therefore use of the permanent facility) on safety grounds.

Is there something unique about this site which precludes the storage of Hydrogen? Other operators (e.g. Metroline) store Hydrogen without problem. If the Crawley site is the problem, could they use the Copthorne site instead?

 

[Edvid]

Presumably this is a reason why West Sussex 's/Metrobus ZEBRA 2 funding is conditional?

Yes, most likely.

Is there something unique about this site which precludes the storage of Hydrogen? Other operators (e.g. Metroline) store Hydrogen without problem. If the Crawley site is the problem, could they use the Copthorne site instead?

Assuming by Metroline you mean the Perivale East facility sandwiched between the Central line and A40, the storage compound appears to be isolated from people's homes (albeit sat right next to a Vanguard storage facility).

The south-east corner of the Crawley depot (where Metrobus' storage compound is/will be located) isn't far from the new residential block centred on Cornwell Avenue, with the Brighton Main Line right in-between. From a layman's viewpoint that might be what the HSE are concerned about.

 

[MotCO]

Yes, most likely.

Assuming by Metroline you mean the Perivale East facility sandwiched between the Central line and A40, the storage compound appears to be isolated from people's homes (albeit sat right next to a Vanguard storage facility).

The south-east corner of the Crawley depot (where Metrobus' storage compound is/will be located) isn't far from the new residential block centred on Cornwell Avenue, with the Brighton Main Line right in-between. From a layman's viewpoint that might be what the HSE are concerned about.

Having looked at the map, there doesn't seem to be many alternative spots for a hydrogen tank at Crawley. Copthorne, on the other hand, does seem to have a lot of open space around it. What is the bus capacity of Copthorne?

 

[Edvid]

The Metrobus page on BusTimes currently lists 24 buses attributed to that garage, though I don't know how many more it can handle.

 

[Murray J]

The Metrobus page on BusTimes currently lists 24 buses attributed to that garage, though I don't know how many more it can handle.

There likely is some room but not enough for the 97 hydrogen vehicles that'll eventually be part of the fleet (including the 20 already "running").

 

[blelic]

Does anybody have any information on the rumoured new B&H route 1X?

 

[Edvid]

Roger French has written a lengthy article on the Hydroliners (and hydrogen supply / buses in general).

There’s currently just one small problem with hydrogen buses…..

Thursday 11th April 2024 I attended a fascinating and timely visit organised by the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport to Metrobus’s Crawley bus garage on Tuesday. It was to hear more a…

busandtrainuser.com

Thursday 11th April 2024

I attended a fascinating and timely visit organised by the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport to Metrobus’s Crawley bus garage on Tuesday.

It was to hear more about the challenges the Company is facing with its pioneering introduction of liquid “green” hydrogen including commissioning what is destined to be “the largest fuelling station of its kind in Europe” according to hydrogen supplier Air Products.

But there’s a problem.

Twelve months on from the roll out of the first single deck buses on route 10, the fuelling station remains out of use due to bureaucratic challenges involving the Health & Safety Executive and Government Planning Guidance.

But what came through loud and clear on Tuesday was the determination of the Metrobus team to overcome the hurdles they’ve faced and continue with the roll out so they can take advantage of the undoubted many benefits hydrogen brings.

Managing Director Ed Wills gave us a fascinating comprehensive briefing about all the challenges, teething problems and issues that are inevitable when introducing something as revolutionary as a new fleet of hydrogen powered buses.

Metrobus’s first 20 Wrightbus GB Kite Hydroliner single decks were launched, twelve months later than originally planned, in June 2023 for use on Fastway bus routes linking Crawley with Gatwick Airport (which contributed towards their funding), as well as the UK Government and (because it dates back some time ago when the order was submitted) the European Union JIVE scheme (Joint Initiative for Hydrogen Vehicles).

When I took a ride on the new buses on route 10 last July I explained “one of the current drawbacks of hydrogen operation is the very limited supply of ‘green’ hydrogen. This is affecting ….. all fleets, and indeed at Metrobus only around five of the new fleet are in service on any one day while the current fuelling arrangements at the company’s Crawley bus garage are from a temporary installation with the permanent facility awaiting official authorisation and approval.”

It’s good to see around 10 of the 20 buses are now in service every day, almost the full allocation on route 10, but those frustrations of hydrogen supply still mean the temporary installation is in place and the company is having to rely on the uncertainties surrounding a delivery of the ‘grey’ kind of gas hydrogen (produced by electricity/fossil fuels) from tankers, two or three times a week. And unlike the supply of diesel which has long established and reliable supply line arrangements, receiving deliveries of hydrogen gas is much more precarious with reliance on ‘just-in-time’ deliveries which sometimes ‘just’ (don’t arrive) ‘in time’.

Ed is both realistic and sanguine about the future prospects. Which is just as well, as in addition to the 20 Hydroliners delivered last year, 34 more are currently in build thanks to a partnership and funding from Surrey County Council and last month, the Company heard its partnership with West Sussex County Council, Surrey County Council, Kent County Council as well as Gatwick Airport had won a bid for funding to buy 43 more hydrogen powered buses (including 11 double decks) with match funding from the Government’s ‘ZEBRA 2’ fund. That’ll bring the number of hyrdogen powered buses based at Crawley to an impressive 97 vehicles, making it possibly the largest such installation in the UK and Europe.

It’s great news for Metrobus and its passengers. The company pays the equivalent of a Euro 6 bus with the funding needed to upgrade to a hydrogen bus coming from Government. With single deck hydrogen buses costing as much as half a million pounds apiece these days, that’s not to be sniffed at. Nor is the cost of the infrastructure needed at the garage.

As well as the storage and dispensing facilities from supplier Air Products, there’s a need to convert workshop areas to accommodate the special requirements of maintaining hydrogen powered buses, not least the need to avoid any ‘sparks effect’.

We were shown around the facilities which have been introduced at Crawley for the first 20 buses including the £400,000 conversion of an existing workshop bay and installing special vents in the roof and a £21,000 anti-static floor surface.

Thankfully the DVSA approved official MoT bay alongside doesn’t need the ‘hydrogen treatment’ as buses are only ‘inspected’ rather than ‘maintained’ when parked in that area, but with the prospect of a fleet of 97 buses, clearly more workshop bays will need converting, as well as engineering staff trained.

Wrightbus is currently providing a full time engineer on site from 06:00 every weekday to oversee any maintenance issues with the fleet which, with just 10 out on a weekday, seven on a Saturday and five on a Sunday from the fleet of 20, is manageable.

Ed explained the reason for his continued commitment to the hydrogen project, notwithstanding the hurdles, is not only the green credentials of the fuel but also its properties make it ideal for the intensive urban services the company operates to Gatwick Airport with 24/7, 365 a year schedules making it impractical if the buses were battery-electric needing regular charging. It’s reckoned five or six extra buses would be required just to maintain current timetables. Hydrogen powered buses, on the other hand, have a range of up to 550 miles making them eminently suitable for this type of intense work as well as longer distance inter-urban routes which also feature prominently in the Metrobus network.

Not only that, but as Ed explained, the Hydrogen storage and dispensing facilities have seen just 12 parking spaces taken out whereas if a fleet of 97 electric buses needed access to battery recharging facilities the space required would be much greater in what is already a confined parking area at the garage.

Although battery range is improving as well as new options for fast charging, the fuelling of a hydrogen bus is expected to take around eight minutes once the new set up is commissioned and the appropriate pressure available, which is much quicker than a full electric battery recharge. Due to the current temporary arrangements it’s taking around 20 minutes to fuel a hydrogen bus.

Ed bears the frustrations of the current situation well and you can’t help but admire his positivity. He is full of praise for the performance of the initial batch of Hydroliners, explaining they’re doing “a good job out on the road”. We were given a sample ride through Crawley’s impressive guided busway as well as around the town and to Gatwick Airport and back, and you can see why Ed is pleased. The acceleration is impressive as is the ride comfort. Passengers are well catered for and the buses are reliable.

But what is to come of the current impasse? Not least as Ed frustratingly explained there’s no shortage of green liquid hydrogen. “It’s available in Rotterdam now” he explained “and just needs bringing over to Immingham and then delivered to Crawley”. Everything is in place at the garage ready to receive it.

Instead, the company is having to accept uncertain deliveries of ‘non-green’ hydrogen gas into temporary storage and dispensing facilities which limit the scope of daily operations to around 10 buses a day. Although, at least they’re achieving buses on the road. It’s much more hit and miss in the West Midlands and Merseyside where double deck hydrogen buses have yet to achieve consistent availability for service.

The UK Government’s Hydrogen Strategy issued in August 2021 is full of ambitious goals for future production and use of the fuel throughout industry and even domestically including a target “for 5GW of low carbon hydrogen production capacity by 2030” but the section on storage fails to address the impasse Metrobus has found itself in, instead stating blandly “hydrogen’s ability to store energy for long periods of time and in large quantities is an important part of its strategic value to a fully decarbonised energy system, and we envisage hydrogen storage being a key part of future network infrastructure. Storage can support security of supply as production and use increase and become more spread over time and distance.”

Which is all good to know especially as the same UK Government is providing funding for the purchase of buses to run on hydrogen, which of course has to be stored in sufficient quantity at one time to ensure continuity of bus operation.

But, in the meantime the UK Government’s Health & Safety Executive (HSE) are properly following current UK Government guidelines concerning on-site storage of hydrogen, which some would observe are now outdated in view of the UK Government’s Strategy towards Net Zero.

The Metrobus storage facility is capable of holding 5,000kg of hydrogen. For that, it needs planning consent from Crawley Borough Council which in turn must seek advice from the HSE. Metrobus submitted its application in March 2022 expecting a 12 month delay and two years later, on 18th March 2024, the HSE finally determined its position concluding “the risks to the surrounding population arising from the proposed operation(s) are sufficiently high to justify advising against the granting of Hazardous Substances Consent on grounds of safety”.

Ed told us a particular concern is a relatively new secondary school sited close by on former industrial land.

Although why that raises a concern greater than, for example, Metrobus staff working in the adjacent offices and workshops or passengers on trains passing close by on the Brighton Main Line is a mystery.

Crawley Borough Council could still grant the application but that seems unlikely in view of the HSE’s unequivocal position. Indeed in its advice letter the HSE stated “if there are factors which weigh strongly in favour of the application, we suggest that it would be desirable for an Inspector from HSE to attend a meeting to explain the technical assessment and level of risk in more detail, before a final decision is made” as well as reminding the Council “where a hazardous substances authority is minded to grant consent against COMAH competent authority advice, it should notify the COMAH competent authority and allow 21 days for the competent authority to give further consideration. During that period the COMAH competent authority will consider whether to request the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to call-in the application for determination.” HSE is part of the COMAH competent authority.

I think we can take it the Council will not be granting the consent at this time. Unless circumstances change – and it seems that needs UK Government to redefine safe storage quantities of hydrogen and planning guidance – we are unlikely to see more than 10 of the current 20, and in due course, potentially 97 new hydrogen buses, on the road.

Which is a shame.

 

[JonathanH]

Seems that more Volvo B9TL Wright Eclipse Gemini 2s sent from Brighton to Crawley are 6908 BJ63 UJP and 6911 BJ63 UJT following on from the previous ones transferred. 6908 in service in Brighton & Hove colours and 6911 in its special livery.

A caption on a Flickr photo says that these are to enable the 420 to be Euro 6 compliant.

 

[Murray J]

A caption on a Flickr photo says that these are to enable the 420 to be Euro 6 compliant.

The 420 is already operated by B9TLs, that's what the existing 6 are mostly used on. There's at least 6 more due in, ex Brighton 479/486-490 which'll become 6907-6912. I say at least 6 because there are rumours of an additional 2 or 4 arriving but that's more guesswork or speculation than anything else.
The plan is for them to replace N230UD Omnicities at Crawley, those'll then cascade to Copthorne and replace the elderly B7TLs running there.
6909/6910 arrived back from refurbishment a few days ago.

 

[Hophead]

News that the failure to fully commission the Hydrogen storage facility at Crawley has now reached the BBC:

Safety concerns over fuel site for hydrogen buses

From the article:

In a submission to council planners, HSE said it "concluded that the risks to the surrounding population arising from the proposed operation(s) are sufficiently high to justify advising against the granting of hazardous substances consent on grounds of safety".
A HSE spokesman said: “Our detailed public safety assessment for the Crawley bus hydrogen filling station identified that hydrogen would be stored close to surrounding populations, including a nearby school.
"Our response to Crawley Borough Council (acting as the Hazardous Substances Authority) was to advise against the application.
“It is now for the Hazardous Substances Authority to make its final decision.”
Crawley Borough Council said: "Now that HSE comments on the hazardous substances consent application have been received, the local planning authority will conduct further detailed discussions.”

and:

Simon Earmshaw, production supply chain director for Air Products, which operates the liquid hydrogen station, said: “Hydrogen is as safe as any other fuel, but of course it comes with all the benefits of being clean.
“What’s exciting here, [is] this will be the largest refuelling station operating the largest bus fleet in Europe, once we get fully running.”
Clare Jackson, chief executive of Hydrogen UK, the trade body for hydrogen fuel, said: “Hydrogen is still an emerging solution which means that many planning and permitting authorities are still going to be getting up to speed with the technology.
“Sometimes this can mean it’s slow getting the right approvals.”

 

[MotCO]

Before Metrobus embarked on their hydrogen programme, I assume they took advice that the site was suitable for the storage of hydrogen.
If not, it could be a costly mistake .

 

[RELL6L]

There’s going to be something about this on BBC London TV local news between 6.30 and 7.00.

 

[Nicholas Lewis]

Before Metrobus embarked on their hydrogen programme, I assume they took advice that the site was suitable for the storage of hydrogen.
If not, it could be a costly mistake .

They took the subsidy from the government first and the rest was a minor detail. Meanwhile we have to put up with clapped out buses on the 100.

 

[Surreyman]

As a Brighton resident and regular bus user I agree with much of this. Like many, I regret the demise of the red and cream livery, the BH3 style is now 21 years old and still looks modern and stylish to me. I think the new livery is meant to be a bolder version of the Live and Breath livery which was OK but too pale and a bit bland in my view. It was based on the colour of the seafront railings.

I do like the new Coaster livery though, which retains green and blue. The first examples have entered service this week and they look really smart. A feature of all the new liveries is that they don't use route numbers on branding, which is just as well as far too many route branded buses appear on wrong routes and even Roger French wasn't able to stop it happening in his days.

Surprised to discover that the new E400MMC 'Coasters' are low height - had a look in the cab of the one at Brooklands, 13' 10'' (in old money), always thought B&H went for Full height bodies? (maybe a batch of Streetlites the exception), is this for standardization or simply to miss overhanging trees?