The Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMC, also marketed as the Alexander Dennis Enviro200, is a single-decker city bus produced by Alexander Dennis since 2014 as the successor to the Enviro200midibus and Enviro300 full-size bus. The first Enviro200 MMCs entered service with National Express West Midlands in 2015. Notably, Enviro200 MMCs have been modified by Fusion Processing to be used as the basis for the first driverless bus trials in the United Kingdom.
The Enviro200 MMC is available over a range of lengths, including 8.9 metres, 9.7 metres, 10.8 metres and 11.5/11.8 metres, as an integral twin-axle midibus or full-size bus. Additionally, the 12.7 metre tri-axle Enviro200 XLB is offered in the New Zealand market. The Enviro200 MMC bodywork is also available as an all-electric bus, known as the Alexander Dennis Enviro200EV, built on a BYD Autobattery electric chassis.
Introduction
The Enviro200 MMC can trace its lineage back to the original Dennis Dart midibus, introduced by Dennis Specialist Vehicles in 1989. One of the most successful bus models of all time,[according to whom?] the original Dart was replaced by the low-floor Dart SLF in 1996. Through financial difficulties at the various parent companies, production of the Dart SLF passed first to TransBus International in 2001 and subsequently to Alexander Dennis in 2004.
The second-generation Alexander Dennis Enviro200 - then branded as the Enviro200 Dart - was introduced as the Dart SLF's replacement in 2006, based very strongly on the design of the previous model. The third-generation Enviro200 was launched in 2009, followed by the Enviro200 MMC in 2015. Production of the classic third-generation Enviro200 ultimately ceased in late 2018.
Alexander Dennis unveiled the Enviro200 MMC (short for Major Model Change) at the Euro Bus Expo in Birmingham in November 2014. As well as replacing the classic Enviro200, it also superseded the Enviro300.[1] The first production examples of the Enviro200 MMC entered service with National Express West Midlands in 2015, the operator having ordered 50 of the type.[2][3]
Go South Coast were early customers of the Enviro200 MMC, with a first batch of 18 delivered to Bluestar in late 2015.[4] Twelve more were delivered to Bluestar in 2016,[5] followed by a third batch in 2019, some of which had air filters mounted on the roof following successful trials in Southampton.[6][7]Swindon's Bus Company had 13 Enviro200 MMCs delivered in 2017, followed by another batch of six in 2020,[8][9] and Morebus had 41 Enviro200 MMCs delivered in 2018 for services between Bournemouth and Poole.[10]
The FirstGroup are another significant operator of Enviro200 MMCs, making significant purchases of the type throughout 2015 and 2016. 32 Enviro200 MMCs were delivered to First Glasgow in November 2015 as part of a larger vehicle investment for the city,[25] followed by the delivery of seven high-specification Enviro200 MMCs in January 2016 to upgrade First Aberdeen's route 13 to 'Platinum' specification.[26] Smaller batches of Enviro200 MMCs were also delivered to First South Yorkshire for services in Sheffield,[27]First Essex,[28]First Potteries,[29]First Cymru[30] and for First Glasgow's express services to Glasgow Airport.[31]
Wellglade Group companies Trent Barton and Kinchbus had 136 Enviro200 MMCs in total delivered between 2016 and 2020. These buses were delivered in various route-branded liveries, such as for the 'Skylink' service to East Midlands Airport, and all feature high-specification interiors.[38][39]
Nine Enviro200 MMCs were delivered to East Yorkshire Motor Services across two batches in 2017.[40][41] Following the company's acquisition by Go North East, a pair of Enviro200 MMCs were delivered for two rural services in 2019[42] and eight more were delivered to Scarborough for the 'Scarborough Sevens' operation later that year.[43] This was accompanied by deliveries of 11 Enviro200 MMCs to Go North East for its 'Green Arrow' service.[44][45]
Transdev Blazefield first took five Enviro200 MMCs for its York & Country operation in 2019 after the company won five service contracts in York.[46][47] A further 13 Enviro200 MMCs with high specification interiors were delivered to the Blackburn Bus Company in January 2020.[48]
Other operators include McGills Bus Services, who took delivery of 26 Enviro200 MMCs in 2019, with 15 of the batch specified to be built to 11.5m length while the remaining eleven were specified to 10.4m length.[50][51] 44 were also delivered to Go Cornwall Bus in 2020, shortly after the launch of the company's new tendered bus network.[52] Two pairs of Enviro200 MMCs were purchased on lease to Thames Valley Buses in 2022,[53] while Cardiff Bus ordered ten Enviro200 MMCs in 2017.[54][55]
The Enviro200 MMC is also popular with independently-run companies, many of which are either bought outright or leased to the operator through lessors such as Mistral.[56] Among these include Moffat and Williamson of Fife, who took seven in 2017,[57]Delaine Buses, who purchase two annually and operate five of the type as of September 2022,[58][59]Edwards Coaches,[60] Whitelaws Coaches,[61] Go Goodwins,[62] and Kev's Cars and Coaches.[63]
The Alexander Dennis Enviro200EV is a single-deck bus that runs on battery electric power. It has been produced since 2015 by the British company Alexander Dennis in partnership with the Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD Auto. The Enviro200EV is an all-electric variant of the Enviro200 MMC.[64]
In 2017, a 12.8 metre tri-axle version of the Enviro200 MMC, named the Enviro200 XLB, was launched for the New Zealand market. Significant investment in the vehicle type has been seen across the country, with Ritchies Transport purchasing 28 for their Auckland operations, and Birkenhead Transport acquiring 25 examples.[65]
The first autonomous bus trial in the United Kingdom commenced in mid-2019, with an Enviro200 MMC modified with SAE Level 4 autonomous software from Fusion Processing able to operate in driverless mode within Stagecoach Manchester's Sharston bus depot, performing tasks such as driving to the washing station, refuelling point and then parking up at a dedicated parking space in the depot.[66] Enviro200 MMCs with this autonomous technology would later be marketed by Alexander Dennis as the Enviro200AV.
A passenger-carrying driverless bus service named CAVForth commenced operations on 15 May 2023 using a fleet of five Enviro200AVs built to the same specifications as the Manchester trial vehicle on a 14 miles (23 km) Stagecoach East Scotland park-and-ride route across the Forth Road Bridge, from the north bank of the Forth to Edinburgh Park station.[67][68] The pilot service, partly funded by the UK government's Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV), employs twenty personnel recruited by Stagecoach, which includes 'safety drivers' who occupy the cab and monitor the driverless technology as well as 'bus captains', similar to the role of a bus conductor, who will assist passengers boarding the service.[69]
Non-passenger testing of the Enviro200AVs along the park-and-ride route commenced for a period of two weeks in April 2022;[70] passengers were first carried on the buses during further testing in January 2023.[71] Four of the five Enviro200AVs entered service on the AB1 service upon the launch of the route in May 2023; one was exported to Dubai for trials with the emirate's Roads and Transport Authority.[72]
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