Barcelona

 

Two centuries, two decades, three ways.

TMB 1803 MAN NL273F CNG with Castrosua body rounds the fountain on Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes in 2019.

It is very seldom that I visit a foreign location more than once but Barcelona is an exception. The first occasion was in 1973 travelling by coach, a French registered Mercedes Benz 0305, from Boulogne via Paris and Madrid. In 2010 it was a lot quicker, with a cheap Easyjet flight and short ‘Aerobus’ hop into the city centre aboard a three-axial Neoplan. The 2019 journey was a long, tiring, day trip from London St Pancras via Paris on Eurostar and French TGV right into the heart of Barcelona.

A Société des usines Chausson with Pegaso engine from the 1973 visit.

In 1973 the city was a commercial hub with a vast expanse of docks and it traded on its Gaudi connection to attract a small number of tourists. The south of the city, towards the docks, was generally out-of-bounds to tourists after dark, apart from those seeking the comfort of a lady for the night. By 2010 the dock area had been gentrified and now housed a large marina and expensive shopping centres, whilst the city at large had become trendy, resulting in a major increase in tourists. 2019 was a shock: the city was overrun by visitors and large numbers of migrants from Africa, boosted by day visitors from cruise ships. The one constant throughout has been the never-ending building of Gaudi’s La Sagrada Familia Cathedral, construction work having commenced on 19th March 1882 and projected to be completed within the current decade.  

 

A Pegaso 6035 artic again from the 1973 visit.

The metropolitan area of Barcelona has 164 municipalities covering an area of 636 sq km with a population of 5.5m. Passenger services are provided by Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB) with a fleet of 1140 buses and it has additional responsibility for the metro, tram, regional railway, urban railway, city sightseeing buses and the funicular railway. The bus network carries 203m passenger per annum on 109 routes (three D routes, eight H routes, seventeen V routes, seventy-four red routes, seventeen night services and three sightseeing routes).

TUSsal (Transports Urbans i Serveis Generals, Societat Anònima Laboral), MAN NL223 with Caetano body on route B20 from the Barri Oliveres suburb into the city centre Sant Pere terminus. Photographed in 2010 outside La Sagrada Familia Cathedral.

Horse-drawn trams were introduced to the city in 1872, followed by steam trams in 1877. Buses were introduced in 1906 with the first permanent urban bus service beginning in 1922. Services were affected by the ravages of the Civil War. Many of the tram lines were damaged by air-raids and were sabotaged. In addition to this, there was very little capital available with which to run the transport system. In the aftermath of war, the network was gradually repaired and reinstated. In 1951, the municipal government gradually began to take over the management of transport services which had previously been run by private companies and by 1958 what has become TMB had been formed.

 

Left: Aerobus Scania K360 with Castrosua Magnus body at the Plaça de Catalunya city centre terminus in 2019. Right: Aerobus Neoplan N4420 L Centroliner at the Plaça de Catalunya city centre terminus in 2010.

Today the fleet is fairly modern, thanks in no small part to funding from the European Investment Bank with a €73.5 million loan in 2019 for the purchase of 254 buses. This is in addition to €32.5 million invested by TMB in 2018. The last major upgrade took place in the early 2000s and by 2007 the entire fleet was low-floor and wheelchair accessible. Today the investment is centred around environmentally friendly vehicles. The latest funding will provide the city with 116 new electric buses, 63 hybrids and 75 using latest generation compressed natural gas. The renewal will also cover Barcelona’s 20 diesel-powered double-decker tourist buses, which will be replaced with hybrids. The first 105 arrived in late 2019, this year will see another 75 and in 2021 the final 74. These arrivals will complement the 350 existing hybrid buses already in the fleet. Much of the new fleet will be provided by MAN Truck & Bus Iberia, SA, although in 2020 an order was placed for 14 Solaris Urbino Electric and 9 Irizar iZe electric artics for service on route H16.

 

Left: This small MAN was used in 2010 to transport shoppers from the city centre to the up-market shopping areas. Fitted out in rather lavish style with tables, table lamps with frilly lampshades and window curtains. Right: TCC (Transports Ciutat Comtal) Mercedes Benz Citaro at Plaça de Catalunya in 2019.

The TMB operation is best described as functional with the operational fleet, colour schemes and infrastructure meeting the needs of a modern-day city without any major efforts to promote itself. The city architecture does however provide a wonderful backdrop for the bus photographer providing you can avoid the crowds.     

TMB 3613, Solaris Urbino artic hybrid H18 on the Passeig de Colom segregated busway opposite the marina in 2019.

Seville 2019

Seville, the capital of Andalusia, is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir River and is the fourth-largest city in Spain with a population of 705,325. The transport network is under the management of TUSSAM (Transportes Urbanos de Sevilla, Sociedad Anónima Municipal), a public company established in 1975 and belonging to the City. 

TUSSAM 170, 7934 FSV a CNG fuelled Irisbus 491E.12.27 CityClass with Noge Cittour body, new in 2007, operating route 34 on the narrow one-way Calle Trajano.
Currently 441 buses are operated with an additional 17 provided by contractors, between them carrying 81,497,883 passengers and covering 12.7m kilometres per annum. In the past year 43 new buses were delivered, of which 35 were 12m long and fitted with CNG (compressed natural gas) engines, and 8 were 10.5m long. The average age of the fleet stands at 9.6 years and by 2020, it is anticipated that 300 buses will be CNG powered. CNG powered buses were first introduced in 2009 and now account for 67% of the annual mileage, the remainder still relies on conventional diesel propulsion.

TUSSAM 1912, 8979 KFK Man NL 313F CNG with Castrosua CS40 City Versus II body in Plaza del Duque, on route 13.
The city has an extensive bus network of forty-six routes, most buses leaving from either Puerta de Jerez in the south of the city centre or Plaza Ponce de Leon in the east, and generally operate between 6 am and 11.30 pm. Popular with tourist are the circular services: C3 and C4 follow the ring road around the old city centre and C5, operated by a Mercedes Benz Sprinter, takes a circular route inside the old city. Tickets cost 1.40 euros per trip bought onboard, alternatively the rechargable Tarjeta Multiviaje travel card is available reducing the cost and can also be used on the tram.Opened in 2007, the single tram route (Metrocentro) T1 is the only public transport available to visitors entering the historical centre of the city around the cathedral and Royal Alcazar. It is just 2.2km long with five stops, and is operated by five CAF Urbos 3 articulated trams fitted with supercapacitors that allow for 2/3rds of the route to be operated catenary free. A rapid charge point is located on the platform outside the cathedral main entrance. Trams previously ran in Seville from 1866 until 1965.

TUSSAM tram 304 with the pantograph down sits under the rapid charge point on Avenue de la Constitucion. The five Urbos 3 articulated trams manufactured by CAF and delivered in 2011 run in battery mode on the catenary free section.
Located on the banks of the Guadalquivir River, Plaza de Armas Bus Station is the focal point for long distance express services. It was built in 1991 as part of the Expo92 infrastructure and, since 2010, has been managed by the Metropolitan Transportation Consortium of the Seville Area. The station has 43 platforms with 1,500 arrivals and departures per day carrying 17,000 passengers on vehicles operated by 20 companies, DAMAS and ALSA being the most prominent. Thirty-six routes operate within the Metropolitan area with numerous national and international routes extending as far as Romania and Morocco. For those interested in trams, a restored car from the original Seville network sits on the main concourse.

DAMAS 1746 KW a Volvo B7BLE with Sunsundegui Astral body departs Plaza de Armas Bus Station on service 174 to Gines, a twenty minute journey to the west of Seville.
A final point of interest for bus enthusiasts is, unusually, the city sightseeing tours particularly those operated by Sevirama using former Nottingham Corporation East Lancs bodied Leyland Atlantean AN68/1Rs. Five are operated and these are supplemented by SE-6277-DL (JPE 233V), a former London Country Leyland Atlantean with Roe body, and two Volvo B9TL/Unvi Urbis 2.5 double-deckers. The Atlanteans were originally imported by Guide Friday in 2002 having been converted to open-top.

Sevirama British Fleet

New To	Fleet No.	Original Registration	Chassis	Chassis No.	Body	Body No.	Original Seating	Current Seating	Current Registration	Previous Registration
Nottingham	598	GVO 718N	Leyland AN68/1R	7403880	East Lancs	4013	H47/31D	O47/29C	SE-0032-BX
Nottingham	572	OTO 572M	Leyland AN68/1R	7302665	East Lancs	2534	H47/30D	O47/29C	SE-4063-BU	SE-2211-R2
Nottingham	575	OTO 575M	Leyland AN68/1R	7304430	East Lancs	2536	H47/30D	O47/29C	SE-4064-BU	SE-2213-R2
Nottingham	592	GTO 332N	Leyland AN68/1R	7404624	East Lancs	4007	H47/31D	O47/29C	SE-4065-BU	SE-2212-R2
Nottingham	591	GCR 881N	Leyland AN68/1R	7404342	East Lancs	4006	H47/31D	O47/29C	SE-4066-BU	SE-2214-R2
London Country	AN233	JPE 233V	Leyland AN68B/1R	7905103	Roe	GO 8287	H43/30F	O43/30C	SE-6277-DL

Sevirama SE-4065-BU, former Nottingham Leyland Atlantean GTO 332N stands at Plaza del Duque de la Victoria. Following close behind is a Volvo B9TL/Unvi Urbis of Compania Hispalense de Transvias in City Sightseeing colours.
Competition for sightseeing business is provided by 'Compania Hispalense de Transvias' operating the City Sightseeing franchise using modern Volvos with Unvi and Ayats bodies. Although reports suggest that they also operate two former British double-deckers, both MCW Metrobuses supplied by Ensignbus were new to London Transport (GYE 386W and WYW 61T), sadly neither were in evidence during the visit.  

DAMAS 453, 8318 KGS, Iveco Magelys PRO 12.2m, VIN VNE7257RX00002195, new in 2017. The DAMAS business originates from the 1920s when it first transported passengers between Ayamonte and Huelva. Today the business is the largest coach and bus company in Huelva province. Currently six national routes and one international route (Lagos, Portugal) are operated from Plaza de Armas Bus Station.
     

Seville is more than just oranges. A split city with the old centre located on the east bank and the modern heart located around the still very much in tact Expo92 site on the west bank, it provides plenty of opportunities for the casual visitor and transport enthusiast.

ALSA 3020, 7379 HBH, Mercedes Benz Travego 17RHD (WEB63224713102887), new in 2010, sits at traffic lights about to turn into Calle Torneo, having just departed  Plaza de Armas Bus Station. The destination blind shows route licence VJA-160 for service M-364.

ALSA Spain became part of the British owned National Express Group in 2005. The company can trace its history back to the 18th century but it wasn’t until 1923 the company Automobiles Luarca, SA (ALSA) was formed. Today it has a modern fleet of 3,465 buses, 9,719 staff and transport more than 358 million passengers per year.

TUSSAM 1056, Castrosua bodied Iveco Cityclass on Avenue Carlos V. The tram overhead wires are visible in the background on the segregated track, within a few yards the tram crosses a roundabout and the overhead wires cease.

TUSSAM 2475 KPS Mercedes Benz Sprinter City 65.77 in Plaza del Duque, on route C5 a circular route inside the old city.