Wrightbus launches new telemetry system to provide real-time feedback

Pioneering bus technology for 75 years, Wrightbus today takes the wraps off its new telemetry system which provides real-time feedback on performance, maintenance and even CO2 savings.

WB UPTIME 365 will enable all Wrightbus models to stay at peak performance for longer, communicating with control rooms at the touch of a button via a staggering 5,000 thresholds and sensors.

Aiding drivers of both zero-emissions vehicles – the hydrogen-fuelled StreetDeck Hydroliner and battery-powered StreetDeck Electroliner – as well as diesel variants, WB UPTIME 365 aims to keep vehicles on the roads for longer through its revolutionary remote fail-safe intervention technology.

CEO Buta Awtal said Wrightbus was breaking new ground, not just in zero-emissions technology but in the software and services need to support it.

“Our aim is to ensure we keep our buses running more efficiently and for longer, wherever they are in the world,” Mr Atwal explained.

“WB UPTIME 365 does exactly as the name suggests – it keeps bus fleets at peak performance, each and every day of the year, and offers a clearer understanding of their operation and availability.”

The AI-based system provides real-time predictive data analysis and can alert operators when a bus needs preventive intervention, saving on maintenance costs. It is backed up by the company’s class-leading support and repair service, on-hand to ensure the smooth running of fleet operations.

“We have developed and perfected the telemetry while on the ground in Aberdeen and it’s a real credit to Aberdeen City Council and to FirstGroup that they have embraced this new technology so readily, putting the city firmly and historically on the zero-emissions map,” added Wrightbus Group Director Ian Gillott.

He also explained that FirstGroup’s army of 250 bus drivers had played a pivotal role in the technology’s development.

“We set out with an over-cautious approach in Aberdeen, just to ensure that we responded to every issue regardless of how minor it may have been. You have to remember that these buses were a world-first and it was always going to take some time for them to bed in.

“But the last few weeks have been a revelation, not only in how we’ve been able to support this bedding-in period on the ground but the way everyone at FirstGroup has responded so positively. Adoption from the drivers has been fantastic, especially as many of them had only ever driven a diesel bus, and they have been enormously helpful in helping us iron out driver-related issues.”

Founded in 1946, Wrightbus has been at the forefront of public transport for 75 years and is still based in the heart of Ballymena, Northern Ireland.

Rescued from administration by green entrepreneur Jo Bamford in October 2019, the company is going from strength to strength, also launching a class-leading electric bus as well as an advanced telematics system to give real-time updates on performance, maintenance and CO2 savings.

“We are breaking new ground in bus technology and it’s only right that we break new ground in the supporting services too,” Mr Atwal stressed.

Wrightbus, based in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, builds the world’s lightest bus chassis and has developed the world’s first double-decker hydrogen bus. Owned by Jo Bamford, who bought the business in 2019, Wrightbus is at the vanguard of the zero-emission bus movement. The first hydrogen buses are in operation in Aberdeen and London, with more local authorities looking to introduce them to their fleet over the coming years.