Inside Go North East's biggest depot and new electric buses

Go North East, which operates buses across Tyne and Wear, was adding the finishing touches to its all-electric fleet when The Northern Echo visited its 250-bus Gateshead depot. 

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But as well as the region's first all-electric fleet with snazzy features like wireless phone charging and additional covid measures, what else goes on in inside the depot? With an occupational health team, control room and engineering shed, there is plenty to see. Let's take a look around.

Managing director Martijn Gilbert on one of the new electric busses

The switch was flipped on the nine high-tech zero-emission buses this morning, as part of a £3.7million joint-funded project from Go North East and the Government’s Ultra-Low Emission Bus Fund, following a bid that was also supported by Nexus and Gateshead Council.

This fund helps support some of the additional costs of electric vehicles over diesel equivalents and the charging infrastructure.

Charging points for the Voltra buses

The electric buses can charge within four hours, but the bus company managing director Martijn Gilbert said the electric fleet will get eight hours each night, which equals 300 kilometres of travel time that is "more than enough" for the whole day on the chosen bus routes.

Martijn Gilbert recharging a bus

Bus company director Martijn Gilbert said: "Electric bus technology is still in its infancy, it's not like cars where there has been a huge choice for a number of years now.

"These are heavier vehicles doing far larger milage an, therefore, the battery capacity and battery capabilities are very much evolving and it's only really in recent times we've reached a point where, at least some routes, can be converted to electric.

"We are a long way away from the tech where this could work for every route that we run but it is the first and we are very, very excited about it. It's groundbreaking."

Mr Gilbert inside a bus, which sports electric and ecofriendly colours

Mr Gilbert continued "Everyone's looked to London which is where this technology really started but of course they have shorter distanced journeys and slower speeds whereas out here we travel greater distances at faster speeds so it's taken time for the tech to evolve."

The buses, branded 'Voltra', are powered by zero-emission sources such as solar, wind and hydro and run between Gateshead, Saltwell Park and Newcastle on Go North East services 53 and 54.

The route was chosen due to its length and while there are plans to expand the firm's electric buses if this trial is successful, the next route has not been set in stone. 

The Voltra fleet on a test run ahead of its launch today, November 26

The electric buses are twice the cost of diesel buses, plus the additional infrastructure, but this should be paid back by what the company saves from fuel costs over a 10 year period. 

They also sport vibrant 'electric' blue lights and have a green, grassy print inside to reinforce the eco-friendly messaging.

Wireless charging and a phone holder

Features include free Wi-Fi, wireless and USB charging, seat-back phone holders that allow you to watch videos from your seat while topping up your battery - all from sustainable sources of course.

For those who don't have wireless charging, there are still USBs

There are also next-stop audio-visual announcements, which builds on facilities already available on diesel buses by having a repeater screen facing the opposite direction for the disabled and buggy bay.

The next-stop screens will also display journey connections, feeding in from the train and Metro to help people better plan journeys. 

The tap off point, which automatically works out the best fare for you

The new ‘tap-on tap-off’ contactless bankcard ticketing, which is a first for the North-East.

All you need to do when travelling on Voltra is simply tap your contactless card as you get on, and as you get off, then the system automatically calculates the fare and caps out at the day or weekly ticket prices if travelling multiple times, making sure you pay the best price – no more than £3 a day or £13 a week.

The hand sanitiser sits at the front of the bus for people getting on

In terms of Covid, all of the buses have hand sanitiser and signage with the front seats being blocked off so people do not sit within two metres from the driver.

Passengers are also encouraged not to sit with anyone apart from their families members or bubble.  

There is clear signage throughout the buses reminding passengers to be safe

Mr Gilbert added: "We don't just have a nightly clean now but we clean throughout the day and use hospital-grade cleaning products.

"We also do weekly anti-bac fogging and misting which can treat certain surfaces for up to 28 days. and we also have a reduced bus capacity, keeping them at a level that people can space out - so roughly half the seats. We are not allowing standees either but that's all just temporary to get us through this hopefully short term period.

"It's really important we have eco-friendly buses given that buses are on a reduced capacity, but we are also taking a long-term view otherwise we wouldn't have invested in these buses."

Colin Barnes, engineering director

Engineering director Colin Barnes, who started at the company as a mechanical apprentice when he was 17, referred to the electric buses as his "baby" after he submitted the funding bid, planned it all and designed the infrastructure from scratch.

He said: "You would not believe how excited I am. I have spent so much time and effort on this project. We've future-proofed it too by buying this land to create a space for the buses and many more, with added infrastructure to put charging points all around the fencing."

Engineers work on busses day in, day out

Walking around the engineering department of the depot, Mr Barnes said: "We are in an engineering bubble, no one else comes here.

"I always say they are the unsung heroes because yes, you need drivers to drive a bus, but you also need engineers to ensure the bus is drivable. This really is a 24-hour operation. The daytime is quiet, big jobs are done at night."

An engineer cleaning his tools in front of a bus

While this workshop is sure to be cleaner in a few years, given less oil with more electric buses, Mr Barnes does not expect anything to change immediately. 

Electric buses will have an element of software updates rather than under-the-hood work and batteries will need to be replaced around every seven to ten years. 

The control room, which has been split in half for social distancing

Just upstairs from the engineering department is the control room. This has been split in half to allow people to socially distance.

The control room is where all calls come in when there is a problem on the road or with a passenger. Every bus is live tracked via GPS so the team here ensures services are running on time by introducing new buses or problem-solving in other ways when someone is running late. 

There are some 650 buses operating across the North-East at peak times.

Social distanced badges that staff wear through the building

Some staff members can be seen wearing social distancing badges in efforts to reinforce Covid messaging, while there is also a one-way system in place and hand santisers throughout the depot. 

The management team hold a Covid crisis meeting every day to explore new ways to keep the company's 2,500 employees, which includes 1,800 drivers, safe.

The team are always looking for creative ways to reinforce the message

Mr Golbert said: "We are constantly looking for creative and new ways to reinforce Covid messaging.

"When things have been on the wall for such a long time they just blend in and become wallpaper. We created this 'Brucey banner' when a few employees spotted it online. We just bought a stock image of Bruce Forsyth and made it ourselves."

This banner is placed in one of two break rooms, which both have reduced capacity.

The occupational health team at Gateshead Go North East depot

Denise Felton occupational health admin (left) and Lesley Emmerson occupational health advisor are two-thirds of the occupational health team at the Gateshead depot. 

There is another on-site nurse and a doctor who comes in as and when needed.

This is where drivers start and end their day

This is where drivers start and finish their day. They sign in here and check what route they are assigned to before heading out.

At the end of the day, they are given a checklist of 30 plus items to ensure there are no problems with bus. This could include everyday wear and tear like a loose wing mirror or broken windscreen wiper. 

Go North East managing director Martijn Gilbert flipping the switch on Voltra alongside driving and engineering colleagues

There are also two training rooms and a theory test facility within the depot, but they are currently not being used due to lockdown. Most training is being done online, although classroom training did resume between the two lockdowns. 

Voltra buses from Go North East

Drivers taking on the electric buses will have additional, in-depth training. The buses are very smooth and quiet compared to a diesel ones but you can hear the battery cooling system, which consists of a fan and water coolant, so they are not completely silent. 

The Voltra fleet

Mr Gilbert says there only needs to be three to four people on board a bus for public transport to make a real difference in terms of space it's taking up on the road and the emissions per passenger.

He said: "Some 15 diesel buses were introduced this year but the latest Euro 6 diesel emissions are reduced by 75 per cent from their earlier versions. So, buses even with diesel power are very green by their very nature and we have been busy making it better year on year. Electric vehicles just take that to the next level."