National Express West Midlands has moved into a new bus and maintenance garage in Birmingham, with the capacity to house a full fleet of electric buses and chargers.
The 6.5-acre site, located on the junction of Wellhead Lane and Aston Lane in Perry Barr, will provide a new base for more than 450 drivers, engineers and back office workers.
There are parking spaces for more than 170 buses, as well as 12 maintenance bays, three fuel bays, three bus washes and one chassis wash.
Other site facilities include a cafe, rest areas, a separate quiet space, shower facilities and dedicated training rooms. There is also a self-contained water recycling system for the bus washes.
National Express West Midlands is actively recruiting drivers and engineers to work at the new Perry Barr garage, which replaces the firm’s original 90-year-old depot located nearby.
David Bradford, Managing Director at National Express West Midlands, said: “From the very start of the project, we wanted to create a site that offered our people a high quality working environment but to also ensure a low environmental impact in both the build and future operations.
“By being able to design something from scratch, we’ve transformed how we work from top to bottom.
“Through evolving our garage and operations we’ll use less energy, be even safer, have more efficient ways of working, and are better equipped to train and look after our people – while providing great value transport for the people of the West Midlands.”