Brighton & Hove Buses has ordered 30 new electric hybrid double-deckers from ADL.
The £9.2 million order will be delivered by September, for the operator’s busy Hangleton-Patcham route 5.
The vehicles, all ADL Enviro400Hs with BAE Systems’ battery-electric Series-ER technology, will be geofenced to automatically run in zero-emissions mode through Brighton’s Ultra Low Emission Zone.
The buses have no wing mirrors – they are replaced by cameras, which reduce blind spots.
Supplied by 21st Century, two HD cameras on the front of the bus feed into two in-cab monitors, giving the driver a wider view of the road and better depth of field.
The cameras automatically adjust to changing light conditions, idea for driving at night, in rain and in low sun.
Software removes distortion from raindrops or dirt on the camera lens. They also have heating systems to protect them from condensation and ice.
Brighton & Hove says it’s the first large order of a mirrorless camera monitoring system for commercial use in the UK.
Brighton & Hove and Metrobus’ Engineering Director Steve Ambury says: “The peripheral view and the clarity of the picture on the monitors is far better than normal mirrors.
“It's much easier to spot a bike coming down the side of the vehicle, for example. It shows it from a long way away.”
