The UK\u2019s largest bus manufacturer, Alexander Dennis, a subsidiary of Winnipeg-based NFI Group Inc., is jumpstarting production on a line of zero-emission double decker buses in North America as demand surges. Late last month, Alexander Dennis announced a partnership with Big Rig Manufacturing to produce 50 Enviro500EV CHARGE buses per year at a new plant in Las Vegas. Big Rig Manufacturing is a subsidiary of Alberta-based Big Rig Collision Group. The venture, which will\u00a0start work next year<\/a>, also includes plans to build 50 clean diesel double decker buses annually.<\/p>\n Big Rig\u2019s familiarity with collision repair and double decker buses played a key role in the partnership coming together, says Stephen Walsh, vice-president and general manager of Alexander Dennis\u2019 North America operations, in an interview with\u00a0Electric Autonomy Canada<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cThey have extensive knowledge of our buses,\u201d says Walsh, adding that Big Rig has previously worked on midlife rebuilds and collision repair for some of its consumers, including BC Transit and RTC Transit in Las Vegas. \u201cBig Rig is fully versed in the way our bus comes together, so they were a very natural choice,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n The decision also falls into line with what Alexander Dennis has done in other places across the world. The company employs subcontractors in Hong Kong and New Zealand to develop double decker buses in those markets, Walsh says.<\/p>\n Walsh adds that the decision to build the buses in Las Vegas was to meet U.S. content assembly requirements outlined in the Buy America Act. He adds that there may be the possibility of securing a development investment grant from Nevada, but nothing is imminent.<\/p>\n In 2021, Alexander Dennis first announced the Enviro500EV CHARGE, a 45-foot electric vehicle that can seat over 130 people. That same year, however bus manufacturing plants in Ontario and Indiana \u2014 established to fulfil an order for more than 250 double decker buses from Ontario transportation agency Metrolinx \u2014\u00a0were shut down<\/a>. At the time, NFI announced manufacturing for North American double decker buses would shift to other existing facilities as part of a cost-reduction strategy.<\/p>\n Before the closure, Alexander Dennis built over 1,200 traditional gas and diesel double decker buses in Canada and the U.S. Once the pandemic hit, however, demand dropped. \u201cThe original plant in Indiana was a bit of an anomaly for us,\u201d Walsh says. \u201cThe Metrolinx volume generated that business, but going forward with lower volume, it made much more sense to find an assembly partner [like Big Rig].\u201d<\/p>\n With the pandemic subsiding, however, interest in buses is rising again. Walsh says public transit agencies in the U.S. and Canada are interested in both the ZEV and clean diesel double decker buses.<\/p>\n In particular, Walsh says that Alexander Dennis is in negotiations with transit agencies in B.C., California and the state of Washington to deploy the latest line of double deckers. He believes the style of buses is most effective for trips within a large urban area, moving people from the suburbs into downtown, say.<\/p>\n \u201cA good example is the Tsawwassen ferry terminal,\u201d Walsh says. \u201cYou catch the ferry, take the bus into the centre of Vancouver, and it drives on the highway.\u201d<\/p>\n To continue reading, click on the following:<\/p>\nExtensive knowledge<\/h2>\n
A pause in production<\/h2>\n
Post-pandemic boom<\/h2>\n