Bosses at First buses have reassured passengers that the vehicles used in Norwich are not the same type of electric buses which have recently been recalled after fires.
The DVSA (Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency) has recalled almost 2,000 electric buses amid fire concerns - although that is not the model of the electric First buses in Norwich.
There have been three recent incidents where electric buses caught fire in London, prompting the recall of Alexander Dennis buses, but First bosses stressed that is a different vehicle to the Northern Ireland-built StreetDeck Electroliners it runs in Norwich.
Piers Marlow, managing director of First East of England, said: “i would like to take this opportunity to reassure our customers that this issue has no bearing on our electric vehicles in Norwich, as they are from a different manufacturer.
“Safety is always our number one priority. As such, we have a rigorous process for bringing any new vehicles into service, which includes engaging with all of the relevant services, including the fire service, and this has been the case with our new electric fleet in Norwich.
“We also check our vehicles on a daily basis for any faults and we have the latest technology in place to help us track and maintain our vehicles to the highest possible standards of safety for our colleagues and customers.”
The London fires prompted a member of the public to ask a question about the safety of electric buses at a meeting of the Conservative-controlled cabinet at Norfolk County Council this week.
Eric Vardy, the council's cabinet member for environment and waste, said: "Our fire and rescue service is proactively meeting with First Bus to ensure that the arrangements in place to prevent a fire are suitable.
"The operational teams are also working with them to develop an emergency response plan that works to limit the impact of any incident.
"All crews are trained in dealing with fires involving lithium-ion batteries, in all situations, on a regular basis.
"Alongside this, we have site-specific information on premises such as the Norwich bus depot that considers firefighting actions for that particular premises.
"We also have specialist hazmat officers that can advise and support at these incidents, and they are mobilised as part of our pre-determined attendance to these incident types."
Mr Vardy added: "To put the three recent fires in London, two of which involved hybrid diesel-electric buses, into perspective, 242 bus fires were reported to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency over the four years to 2022 and none resulted in injury or death."
He said the issue with Alexander Dennis buses in London appeared to be nothing to do with the electric battery, but a fault with air conditioning wiring.
READ MORE: Lithium battery warning after two Norfolk house fires
Norfolk's chief fire officer Ceri Sumner previously said concerns over the increasing use of lithium-ion batteries were "keeping her awake at night".
She said: "They don't go wrong very often, but when they do... they can be quite problematic."
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