A fleet of newly introduced electric buses in York has been found to be too tall to pass under a key railway bridge, leading to the rerouting of a popular local bus service outraging residents.
The unexpected blunder has thrown the city's transport plans into disarray and sparked fierce criticism from both locals and officials.
The new single-decker “e-buses,” part of a £100 million green transport initiative by First York, were intended to revolutionize public transport in the city. But despite their eco-friendly credentials, the buses have a fatal flaw – they cannot fit under the 12-foot (3.9-meter) railway bridge on Leeman Road.
As a result, the city's number 10 bus service has been forced to divert from its usual route, leaving many residents without their regular public transport option.
“It's farcical that Leeman Road has lost another bus service”, Kallum Taylor, a ward councilor for Holgate, said. “Not due to financial pressure, but because the single-deckers of First's new electric buses are too big to fit under a bridge.”
The mishap has only added to the growing concerns over the reduction of local transport options in York. Taylor pointed out that the issue with the buses is part of a broader pattern, with other services also being cut or altered, further isolating residents.
“Cleaner buses are great,” he added, “but it seems like, in the excitement this has caused those involved, this community has again been overlooked. It's nowhere near good enough.”
Residents have also been vocal about their dissatisfaction, taking to social media to express their dismay.
“This should have been taken into consideration when the buses were ordered”, one local said. “They will have been aware of their height so they either needed to find a lower version or consider using the old ones for the routes concerned.”
Another resident summed up the general sentiment with a pointed remark: “Didn't they think to measure it before making the buses? How stupid.”
The tunnel in question has a notorious reputation. Taylor recalled a previous incident where a double-decker bus collided with the bridge, resulting in the entire upper deck being torn off.
“That tunnel is well known as being a problem,” he said. “I am not sure how First went about their decision… If they did not check, then that is appalling—but if they did check and carried on anyway without getting a replacement bus service, that is still bad.”
A First York spokesperson said: “The changes we introduced in June included a re-route and extension of the 59 service, and a new 10L to mitigate alterations to the 10 service in this area.
“This has brought more trips into the city center but we accept that connectivity to Boroughbridge Road has been impacted as the 59 is a limited stop service.”
The spokesperson added that discussions are ongoing with the City of York Council's transport team to resolve the issue. However, residents have been told that a solution could take several weeks to implement.