StreetCar's inaugural service - Ready to roll

Wrightbus is already planning a hybrid-powered StreetCar as it prepares for the inaugural operation of the innovative vehicle on the York ‘ftr’ route next month. More than a bus and almost a tram, StreetCar is set to change the face of UK public transport with a genuine Bus Rapid Transit vehicle.

Combined with First’s specification of new ticketing and information systems and partnership with York city council to ensure priority roadspace, the initial ‘ftr’ service will deploy 11 StreetCars costing a total of around £3.6million. It is designed to be a vision for the future of public transport, but a vision that is available right now.

Wrightbus is well known for innovation, from the first low-floor buses to the current batch of hybrid vehicles in service in London. And StreetCar is undeniably a significant move forward for public transport .

As with all the best bus designs it has been conceived from the inside out. Observers at the roadside may be struck by the external appearance of StreetCar with its deep windows, dramatic front end and integrated wheel covers, but once you get on the vehicle you realise that it is much more than a bus that has had a 21st century makeover. The 3.3m height offers a real tram-like feel and the decision to move the passenger entry behind the front wheel arch avoids the narrow entrance associated with conventional buses. The cab for the driver – or pilot in First’s ‘ftr’ parlance – is segregated from the passengers with a full width and full height sealed zone. The front overhang of the Volvo B7L chassis has been shortened to accommodate the reconfiguration which has necessitated the inclusion of a mild steel frame ahead of the front axle to give additional strength to the body which is otherwise constructed from Wrightbus’ Aluminique system.


Passengers get a clear interior space with very good headroom.

In addition to the increased interior height and wider entrance, the turntable area has been modified in comparison with a conventional artic with increased distance between the bellows and a stiffer and more predictable turntable. The rear of the vehicle demonstrates some of the clear thinking that has driven the project from the outset with the removal of the notorious ‘toilet cubicle’ of the B7LA by relocating the radiator package from the corner to the rear roof. Wrightbus vice president business development Mark Nodder notes that while this change “may have seem blindingly obvious, it was a very difficult technical challenge which Volvo willingly took on”. The result is a vastly improved rear interior for StreetCar which First has used to specify lounge-style seating that it believes may be popular with student passengers in York. The revised radiator location is one of the project innovations that may “wash through into mainstream products”, according to Volvo’s Adrian Wickens.

The first batch of StreetCars will have 42 seats (37 conventional, 5 super seats and 10 perches) plus standing room for 61 people and one wheelchair space.

Wrightbus has focussed on reducing interior noise in StreetCar and claims to have achieved a reduction to 79db at 80kmh, compared to over 85db in a comparable Wright Millennium vehicle. Micro-porous panels have been incorporated into the roof lining which allows sound waves to pass through but they are then absorbed by glass wool insulating quilts in the roofspace to significantly reduce reverberation in the vehicle interior. The result is a “more deadened atmosphere, enhanced by the treatment of door openings to resemble the ‘thud’ of an executive saloon car door.

Attention to ride comfort has also been paramount. This has led Wrightbus to increase the stiffness of the vehicle with an optimised suspension package and mid-axle damping. It says that the result is that StreetCar has a dramatically different ride to comparable Wrightbus Millennium products.

On the downside, StreetCar is heavier than a Millennium B7LA and there will be an inevitable fuel penalty, although no data has yet been released.

For the initial batch of 40 StreetCars, power will come from a 275bhp Volvo D7C Euro 3 engine with a 6-speed ZF automatic gearbox. A Euro 4/5 version is planned for the next batch although Wrightbus is keen to move ahead with development of a hybrid version following the successful launch of its Electrocity vehicles in London. “StreetCar will fully come of age and be every bit as good as a tram at that stage,” says Nodder.


StreetCar has a dedicated production line at Ballymena.

The StreetCar vehicles are being built on a dedicated production line at Wrightbus’ Ballymena factory which sits alongside three double-deck and three single-deck lines. As a result of continued expansion in recent years the company now employs more than 900 employees and expects to produce between 900 and 1,000 vehicles in 2006.

StreetCar has been developed in partnership with First and Nodder is quick to acknowledge the vision of Moir Lockhead in placing an order for the first 100 StreetCars, although to date only 39 have been scheduled for production. The big prize as far as Wrightbus is concerned, may be export markets with the USA and Canada representing a clear target for Nodder given the strong interest and investment in Bus Rapid Transit in North America. Continental Europe is also on the target list and London too, with the 2012 Olympics providing opportunities for the forthcoming hybrid-powered StreetCar.

The telematics systems including CCTV, ticketing, vehicle location and passenger information have been “integrated built into the design at the outset and not a later bolt-on,” says First’s ‘ftr’ project manager Barbara Bedford. The new ticketing system, supplied by Mobimatic, combines cash ticketing with contactless smart card and barcode scanning for M-ticketing. The latter will enable customers to buy tickets via their mobile phone for which they will receive a text message incorporating a barcode that can be read by the onboard machine. This M-ticketing system has already been trialled by First’s Aircoach operation in Dublin and First envisages that York’s high student population will lead to enthusiastic adoption of the technology. Mobile phones can also be used to get real-time information on ‘ftr’. Information screens will also be available in city centre locations.

“The challenge is to make public transport irresistible,” says Bedford, “by taking the best of the bus and the best of a tram”.

Of course the fact that the driver has no contact with passengers means that checking passengers are not boarding for free becomes a priority. Unlike London, of course, the operator in this instance will have a very real interest in fares being paid and First is allocating six dedicated revenue protection officers for ‘ftr’ in addition to 39 pilots. For he first four weeks of operation ten ‘ftr’ hosts will be deployed to assist customers with boarding and ticketing issues, although given the large number of visitors to the city this may be a resource that First has to consider continuing longer term.


The 'ftr' service becomes a reality in York from 8 May.

The ‘ftr’ service has won strong support from York city council which has allocated £1million towards infrastructure improvements along the route. The city’s head of public transport Julie Hurley says that the scheme has been welcomed enthusiastically by members with the council leader adopting it as his pet project. Extensive public consultation has taken place to smooth the way for new road alignments, street markings and parking and waiting restrictions. A traffic light priority and tracking system BLISS  (Bus Location Information Sub System) underpins the infrastructure support for ‘ftr’ to help ensure that vehicles stay on schedule.

York is not a big city with 180,000 inhabitants, although this is boosted by around four million visitors a year. Existing public transport policies have brought success in the form of maintaining traffic levels at the level of 1999.

The target for ‘ftr’ targeted is to deliver a 10 per cent modal shift from the private car along its corridor and increased ridership of 30 per cent over a five to six year period. The whole industry will be watching the results closely.