Reading goes electric as does the Angel

Thursday 12th February 2026

There was a time when gas powered buses seemed to be the future at Reading Buses but last Friday the company made a power switch and began operating a smart new fleet of 24 ADL Enviro400EV battery electric buses. The first in the fleet, they’ve reportedly cost about £14 million with more spent on new charging infrastructure in the bus depot. A DfT grant of £4.7 million was received with a further £1.3 million towards eight more buses on order for a summer delivery.

These first 24 smart new buses are operating on Reading’s busy long standing purple branded cross town route 17 between Tilehurst and Wokingham Road, Three Tuns and claret branded route 21 serving the University campus at Whiteknights and Lower Earley.

It’s always impressive to see an overnight whole route upgrade and never more so than when the new fleet wears an eye catching livery with high profile branding. You can’t fail to notice the step up such upgrades portray on the street, even on a dull and damp February morning.

They certainly stand out on the University of Reading’s campus.

An official launch took place for the cameras and stakeholders last Thursday afternoon with the full fleet rolled out into service en masse from first thing on Friday morning.

When taking a ride on both routes that morning I was initially fooled by seeing dated registration plates on the buses…

… thinking they were old buses and there must have been a last minute problem preventing introduction of the new fleet but then the penny dropped … they all have RGxxZEB cherished registration plates to indicate the tie up between Reading Buses and Zenobe.

The number is also the bus fleet number which I realised when jumping on a bus outside the station on route 21 which was showing a number 22 as well as a 21 on the front upper deck next stop display, which made me do a double take before twigging.

Once I’d got my aging brain around those unusual features I was able to enjoy the comfort and ambiance these new buses provide. A lot of thought has obviously gone into the interior specification with mood strip lighting around the side panels…

… and the tables.

As you can see, at the rear of the lower deck there are two bench style tables incorporating a foot rest as well as two wireless charging panels on each.

There’s also mood strip lighting in the roof panels which are branded for the colour of the route while the bus is travelling…

… and then change to white when the doors open at a bus stop, which is nice.

There’s two wheelchair spaces (one each side), which is good to see…

… with an illuminated next stop display facing the nearside space, which looks smart…

Seat backs have the usual charging points (wireless and sockets) and bell pushes.

I noticed the penultimate seats don’t have either on the backs of the seats in front of them so a passenger needs to lean over and press the bell on the seat back in front, which could be awkward if it’s occupied.

There’s what looks like a giant toaster above the nearside front wheel which I assume is for litter and recycled litter albeit not marked and I didn’t notice any facility to store the supply of Metro newspapers.

On the upper deck there’s a table for four on the offside immediately behind the staircase…

… with four pull out surfaces ‘Chiltern Railways style’…

… and as already mentioned, a rather large, perhaps larger than it needs to be, housing for the next stop display is at the front.

Seats are comfortable and practical for an urban journey of relatively short duration…

… with a smart grey based moquette and good leg room, both on the upper deck…

… and lower deck.

Robert Williams, Reading Buses Chief Executive, reminded staff that the company’s owners, Reading Borough Council, “acquired the town’s horse-drawn tramway in 1901 to electrify it, and it is notable that we are reintroducing a different form of electric technology in our 125th anniversary year. The old tramway ran from Oxford Road to Wokingham Road which remains the core of the purple 17 route.”

The company is marking its 125th anniversary this year in a number of ways including new fleet no 4 (RG04ZEB) being painted in a special gold livery.

They’re impressive buses and the eight more expected this summer will be for operation on route 26.

It’s interesting to note how other electric bus fleets are being introduced around the country including a characteristically razzmatazz style launch a couple of weeks ago for 29 Wright buses for Go North East “in an event unlike anything the region has seen” at the Utilita Arena Newcastle.

“Guests were welcomed with lanyards and limited-edition concert-style T-shirts, before the arena erupted into a wristband light show inspired by the likes of Taylor Swift and Coldplay. As the finale hit, the lights lifted to reveal our new fleet of electric double-deckers centre-stage – the first time buses have ever taken the spotlight at the venue.”

I often wonder how much such extravagant launches cost to put on and whether the resultant coverage in the local media and trade press justifies such a financial outlay, particularly when a more low key launch, as in Reading on Thursday, seems to have achieved the same level of coverage and awareness in the local market.

However it did encourage me to take a trip up to Newcastle on Monday to also check out Go North East’s new buses.

As already shown in the news image above, there are 29 of these new Wright StreetDeck Electroliners for routes 21, 58 and X66 although so far only enough buses have arrived to enable the first two routes to be upgraded and then not enough buses to make for a complete route conversion.

It looks like around 25 of the new buses have seen service so far with those for the X66 yet to break cover.

An updated version of the Angel 21 livery has been applied to the buses for that route…

… with route 58 joining the Voltra branding first used for a couple of routes in 2020.

The interiors are smart but don’t come with the same refinements as in Reading. For example, a more traditional seat layout at the rear of the lower deck has a seat pair instead of the bench table over the rear wheel…

… and there’s no table upstairs, or mood strip lighting around the body panels.

They also have two wheelchair spaces as now seems to be standard…

… although the offside space has a grab pole in front of a single ‘priority seat’.

It’s interesting to compare the lower deck layout with seven forward facing seats without a step up…

… compared to ten in Reading’s buses, as can be seen in this ‘side by side’ comparison.

Although Go North East does offer more space on the nearside for a buggy as well as a wheelchair.

As in Reading’s buses there isn’t yet a holder for the Metro newspapers and there’s a more standard litter bin than the toaster variety.

The seats themselves are comfortable, as is the leg room, but I prefer Reading’s more subtle grey based moquette. Also, there are no wireless charging holders on the rears of the seat backs but there are usb and bell pushes.

As in Reading, it’s good to see more new electric buses hitting the streets for passengers in the North East.

Roger French

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