Surrey coach company Wattsway Travel has added the first electric coach to its fleet, a Yutong TCe12.
The 53-seat battery electric coach offers a range in excess of 200 miles at a full charge and will be primarily used to service contracts for schools in South West London.
The vehicle, supplied by Pelican Engineering, adds to the company’s eight-strong fleet. Wattsway estimates that over 10 years the Yutong will produce 414kg less CO2 than a comparably sized diesel vehicle with a Euro VI compliant engine, based on 44,000 miles per year.
The six-figure finance package was arranged with Paragon Bank through brokerage Stoke Park Finance.
Mark Watts, who founded Wattsway Travel in 2017, said he wants to transition the fleet towards being predominantly electric over the next four to five years.
“The majority of our work is within urban areas, so they are the ideal solution,” he said. “We have a number of contracts with schools and the pupils were increasingly asking why we were using diesel vehicles when electric options were available.
“As a country, we are becoming more accepting of – and enjoying – electric vehicles and that is now extending to commercial vehicles.”
