Electric buses need a plan for the next operating contract

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Greater Manchester is entering a new phase of bus franchising. In September 2026, Go-Ahead announced that Go North West had won two operating contracts from Bee Network covering 38 routes and approximately 60 buses, with the service commencing in March 2027. Eighteen of those routes will operate from a new depot in Leigh. The award is a reminder that operating companies can change as long as the depots, charging infrastructure and grid connections supporting the passenger network remain in operation for decades.

Purchasing electric buses adds a long-term physical commitment to contracts that are often much shorter. An operating agreement can last five to seven years. A multi-megawatt warehouse building, substation or electrical connection can still be useful under several such contracts. Sometimes buses can be transferred between operators, but land, cable routes, electrical capacity and installed charging equipment are tied to particular sites. Those assets must support passenger service even as the company responsible for driving the buses changes.

Consider an authority re-tendering electric bus routes. The owner has used a convenient deposit and financed chargers and a major grid connection. A competing operator presents an attractive price and a credible operating plan, but has no guaranteed right to use the warehouse and electrical infrastructure. You may need to negotiate with the incumbent, find alternative premises or secure another connection to the network, which could add years of work and substantial costs. A nominally competitive tender can become much less contestable once those obligations are included.

South Yorkshire has taken a deliberate approach to this issue. In March 2026, the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority announced the purchase of five major depots, adding them to the Leger Way public depot in Doncaster. First Bus and Stagecoach will rent the acquired facilities during the transition. The authority intends to use the property for franchise operations and electric bus infrastructure, with its first franchise services scheduled for September 2027. Six operators have reached the next stage of procurement for the initial packages at Olive Grove and Leger Way.

This does not establish that each city must own all deposits. London has long maintained a publicly specified, competitively operated bus network, while many workshops remain outside the direct ownership of Transport for London. Secure leases, access rights, assignable contracts and specialized infrastructure providers can preserve the same continuity, depending on the local market. The practical test is whether a qualified successor operator can obtain the depot, buses, loading capacity and operational information necessary to take over by the contracted date.

The remaining value of the assets is critical to that test. If an operator finances charging infrastructure for twenty years through a five-year contract, it needs to know what happens to the investment if another operator wins the routes. The authority should also avoid paying for a useful electrical connection and then discovering that it cannot make that capacity available to the next contractor. Depreciation, compensation, asset transfer, warranties, software access and network connection permits must be settled before the first contract ends, ideally before it begins.

England’s January 2026 bus franchise guide recognizes the importance of depots, charging infrastructure, transfer agreements and competition in subsequent acquisitions. The engineering of electric buses has advanced considerably. Public authorities now need procurement structures that keep the fleet and its supporting infrastructure useful as routes, contractors and technologies evolve.

My TFIE Strategy Briefing article examines the testing of the second contract across Greater Manchester and South Yorkshire, including access to assets, residual values ​​and operational continuity. It is based on my open report, The Bus Is Not the System, which compares the governance of metropolitan buses and electrification in Britain and Ireland.