Following its order for 55 electric buses in March, Transport for Greater Manchester has awarded another contract to Wrightbus. The latest order covers 125 additional electric buses for the Bee Network, through which the region plans to convert its entire bus fleet to zero-emission drivetrains by 2030.Image: Transport for Greater ManchesterOf the 125 electric buses now ordered, 100 will go to Metroline Manchester. The operator will deploy them from the Hyde Road depot, which is currently undergoing modernisation to support additional battery-electric buses. The announcement does not specify which models Wrightbus will supply for this part of the order. The remaining 25 vehicles will go to Stagecoach and include 16 single-deck and nine double-deck battery-electric buses.Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has not disclosed delivery dates for the newly ordered electric buses. The same applies to the 55 electric buses Wrightbus secured in March. However, TfGM is currently receiving 76 vehicles from an earlier order. Of these, 33 battery-electric double-decker buses will operate on routes 8 and 10, connecting Bolton, Farnworth, Pendlebury and Salford.The remaining 43 vehicles are designed specifically for routes V1, V2 and V4 on the Leigh Guided Busway. According to TfGM, these buses have completed acceptance testing at Wrightbus’s Ballymena plant and will enter service in the coming weeks.In parallel with the vehicle rollout, TfGM is expanding the charging infrastructure at its bus depots. According to the transport authority, half of the Bee Network depots have now been electrified. The Ashton and Middleton sites are already fully equipped for zero-emission buses, and upgrades have also been completed at depots including Bolton, Oldham, and Hyde Road.The expansion of the depots is a key requirement for Greater Manchester to advance its planned electrification of the bus fleet. By 2030, the entire Bee Network fleet is set to operate emissions-free. TfGM states that the latest Wrightbus order keeps the project on track to meet this target. An interim milestone is also expected this year, with half of the fleet set to run on battery-electric power.The latest order forms part of a broader procurement programme. At the end of 2025, the Greater Manchester Combined Authority earmarked nearly £60 million for around 220 additional battery-electric buses. At the time, the authority stated that the first vehicles from the programme would enter service by the end of 2026. By then, officials expected around 350 electric buses to operate within the Bee Network, representing roughly 20 per cent of the total fleet.The transport authority’s latest announcement does not provide details on the current fleet size. With the delivery of the 76 units from an earlier order and the 55 units ordered in March, Greater Manchester is expected to have 293 e-buses from Wrightbus. The latest order will add another 125 vehicles from the Northern Irish bus manufacturer.Wrightbus is not the only manufacturer supplying buses for the Bee Network. Alexander Dennis is also involved in the fleet transition. According to Transport for Greater Manchester, nearly 500 buses from the Scottish manufacturer, built in Falkirk and Scarborough, are now in service in Greater Manchester.tfgm.com