First Bus appoints new operations manager in York as electric depot transformation continues
First Bus has appointed Tom Donnelly as Operations Manager for its depot in York.
He leads of team of staff managers and supervisors supporting a crew of over 200 drivers and a fleet of more than 80 buses.
Tom joins following two years in the same role at Aircoach, another First Bus business based in Ireland running airport services.
His arrival marks a return to the city, where he was previously in the rail sector with Virgin East Coast and roles with other train operators at York station during five years.
He said: “It’s great to be back in York and I’ve joined at an exciting time in the transformation of First Bus and the future of transport in the city.
“More zero emission buses are gradually entering our fleet since the new-look York Electric vehicles began operating at the end of August and the total conversion of the depot with power charging infrastructure is progressing well.”
The new buses can be seen on services 1, 4, 5 and 5A and are set to be introduced on the university routes this month.
An order of 53 StreetDeck Electroliner double-deckers and the single-decker GB Kite Electroliner, with features including audio visual next stop technology, USB charging points and Wi-Fi connectivity, represent a total investment by First Bus of £13m supported with £10.2m funding secured by City of York Council from the Government’s Zebra scheme.
Each bus will save up to 60 tonnes of carbon emissions a year, meaning an anticipated annual reduction of more than 3,000 tonnes of CO2 when the full fleet is in operation.
These extend the existing all-electric Metrodecker buses on the York Park & Ride and the mid-size Versa single-decker vehicles.
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Notes to editors
Media enquiries to Richard Harrison, PR Manager, First Bus North & West Yorkshire 07973 668116 richard.m.harrison@firstbus.co.uk
About First Bus
First Bus is one of the UK’s largest bus operators. Making journeys easier for our customers, we were the first national bus operator to accept contactless card payments across all of our services and our First Bus App is voted ‘best in class’ amongst UK bus operators. Our most recent investments are in new, state-of-the-art buses across our key networks.
We work proactively with our local authority partners, making a positive impact on air quality, tackling congestion and improving customer experience. We are focused on First Bus becoming a leader in the transition to a low-carbon future and are committed to operating a zero emission bus fleet by 2035; we have pledged not to purchase any new diesel buses after December 2022. We also operate the Aircoach network in Ireland.
First Bus is an equal opportunities employer and a division of FirstGroup.