The Wright GB Kite is a range of full-size zero-emission

single-deck bus A single-decker bus or single-decker is a bus that has a single deck for passengers. Normally the use of the term ''single-decker'' refers to a standard two-axled rigid bus, in direct contrast to the use of the term double-decker bus, which i ...

es manufactured by

Wrightbus Wrightbus is a Northern Ireland based bus manufacturer and a pioneer of the low-floor bus. The company was established in 1946 by Robert Wright and was later run by his son William Wright, until it was acquired in 2019 by British businessman ...

since 2022. Similar in body style to the diesel powered

Wright GB Hawk The Wright GB Hawk is an full-size single-deck bus produced by Wrightbus in Ballymena, Northern Ireland since 2021. The first all-new model to be launched by Wrightbus following their takeover by JCB, the GB Hawk is an integral design consis ...

, the GB Kite is an integral design that can be built as a

battery electric vehicle A battery electric vehicle (BEV), pure electric vehicle, only-electric vehicle, fully electric vehicle or all-electric vehicle is a type of electric vehicle (EV) that exclusively uses chemical energy stored in rechargeable battery packs, wi ...

, the Electroliner BEV, and as a

fuel cell electric vehicle A fuel cell vehicle (FCV) or fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) is an electric vehicle that uses a fuel cell, sometimes in combination with a small battery or supercapacitor, to power its onboard electric motor. Fuel cells in vehicles generate elec ...

, the Hydroliner FCEV. The GB Kite range was launched in September 2021, following the launch of the double-deck

Wright StreetDeck The Wright StreetDeck is an integral double-decker bus that was manufactured by Wrightbus from 2014, originally delivered as standard with a Daimler OM934 diesel engine. Hybrid-electric, full-electric and hydrogen-powered variants have subsequ ...

Electroliner and Hydroliner range earlier in the year. The Electroliner BEV has a maximum range of with the top option of a 567kwh battery, charged through conventional DC charging or pantograph charging. The Hydroliner FCEV has a maximum range of , powered with a with either a 70 or 100kwh

fuel cell A fuel cell is an electrochemical cell that converts the chemical energy of a fuel (often hydrogen) and an oxidizing agent (often oxygen) into electricity through a pair of redox reactions. Fuel cells are different from most batteries in requ ...

system produced by

Ballard Power Systems Ballard Power Systems Inc. is a developer and manufacturer of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell products for markets such as heavy-duty motive (consisting of bus and tram applications), portable power, material handling as well as engineer ...

in combination with a or hydrogen tank. Regular production of both GB Kite variants was fully underway by December 2022.

Orders

Hydroliner FCEV

The first orders for GB Kites was placed in November 2021, with Metrobus ordering 20 Hydroliner FCEV vehicles for use on the Fastway network, to be delivered in late 2022. 60 left-hand drive Hydroliner FCEVs have been ordered by

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

municipal operator , Wrightbus' first European order since the bus builder was rescued from bankruptcy, with deliveries of the Hydroliners to take place between 2023 and 2025. In May 2022, Wrightbus entered a deal to supply the Australian bodybuilder

Volgren Volgren is an Australian bus and coach body manufacturer. History Volvo Buses, VolGrenda Corporation, gren was formed in 1977 by Melbourne bus operator Grenda Corporation in Dandenong, Victoria. Because Grenda held the Volvo Buses dealership i ...

with two GB Kite Hydroliner chassis for the company to body. These two buses are scheduled to enter service with

Transdev Queensland Transdev Queensland Bus is an Australian operator of bus services in the Redland City region of Brisbane. It operates 31 services under contract to the Government of Queensland under the TransLink banner. It is a subsidiary of Transdev Australa ...

for hydrogen fuel-cell trial services in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

in 2023.

Electroliner BEV

28 Electroliners are expected to enter service with the Foyle Metro in 2023 as part of an investment by

Translink Translink (or TransLink) may refer to: * TransLink (British Columbia), the public transport operator in Vancouver, Canada * Translink (Northern Ireland) Translink is the brand name of the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company (NITHCo), a ...

for 38 battery electric Wright buses for

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

. 50 more have been ordered for delivery to both

Ulsterbus Ulsterbus is a public transport operator in Northern Ireland and operates bus services outside Belfast. It is part of Translink, the brand name for the subsidiary operating companies of the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company, which also ...

and

Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

in summer 2024. The

FirstGroup FirstGroup plc is a British multi-national transport group, based in Aberdeen, Scotland.First York First York operates local bus services, with a network centring around the cathedral city of York, North Yorkshire, England. It is a subsidiary of FirstGroup, which operates bus, rail and tram services across the United Kingdom and Ireland. His ...

and

First West Yorkshire First West Yorkshire operates both local and regional bus services in West Yorkshire, England. It is a subsidiary of the FirstGroup, and is made up of three sub-division brands: First Bradford, First Halifax, Calder Valley & Huddersfield and Firs ...

First Leicester Leicester Citybus,Companies House extract company no 2000072< ...

First Eastern Counties First Eastern Counties is a bus operator providing services in Norfolk and Suffolk in eastern England. It is a subsidiary of FirstGroup. It has seven depots which are part of five operating areas spread out across East Anglia. The five operatin ...

and

First Hampshire & Dorset First Hampshire & Dorset is a bus operator providing services in the counties of Hampshire and Dorset. It is a subsidiary of FirstGroup. History First Hampshire & Dorset was created out of various different smaller companies which were merged o ...

for services in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

and

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

respectively.

References

Single-deck buses Low-floor buses Battery electric buses Fuel cell buses Vehicles introduced in 2021 GB Kite {{Bus-stub