Post by lj61nwc on Sept 23, 2024 5:45:35 GMT
As garages electrify there should be less delays on average in the future
Operators have to request a quote, to factor into their bid for a route, from UKPN for the additional electricity that they will pull when the chargers are active, UKPN will reply with a quote that's valid for a fixed period of time (the greater the demand for electricity from other properties/developments in the area, the lower the fixed period of time is to accept the quote)
So when operators submit a bid, they may well have the power in theory but by the time the bids are reviewed, negotiated and revealed, the quote may have expired and since it's a first come, first served, style of power distribution, the operators are now at the back of the queue once they ask for a new quote after winning/retaining a route at a garage which isn't wired up.
However, if there isn't enough power in the area and the company will be drawing a lot, UKPN can and will request for you to cough up for an on site substation (I think Sutton was one) which will cause additional delays
Also, the detailed plans are only drawn up when the quote is accepted meaning any undetected/underlying problems will only become clear after the quote has been accepted by the operator.
Then there's the fiasco of having the chargers installed, TH seems to have space limited so some buses had to be out stationed at Beddington the last time chargers were installed, not much space at Beddington to do so now. I have a feeling GAL want to run wires on the ceiling of SW with cable trays in the air to minimise disruption of digging the ground like they did with A but this might interfere with the listed architecture as it would significantly change the looks.