Alexander Dennis Enviro200 Dart

The Alexander Dennis Enviro200 Dart is a midibus manufactured by Alexander Dennis for the British market as the successor of the Dart SLF chassis and Pointer body.

Design
The Enviro200 Dart was announced by Alexander Dennis on 20 March 2006, with the vehicle being launched at a media event at the Alexander Dennis factory in Guildford in August of that year. The bus is available in five lengths, ranging from 8.9m to 11.4m.

Unlike the innovative but unsuccessful TransBus Enviro200, the chassis of Enviro200 Dart (also known as the Dart 4 ) retains the conventional rear-engined layout of the Dart, and is offered with a choice of four or six-cylinder Cummins ISBe Euro IV engines with a range of transmission options, and features new front and rear axles.

It offers the same seating capacity of the Pointer, but with more 'fixed' seats rather than 'tip up' for each length. The vehicle features integrated chassis and body multiplexing, and cantilevered seats.

Externally, the bus features the same front panel as the double-deck Enviro400, projecting a "family look" onto the two models. The Enviro200 Dart chassis is also available with East Lancs Esteem and MCV Evolution bodywork.

As of February 2007 the body of Enviro200 Dart became available on MAN 14.240 chassis, this is to give the option of EGR emissions reduction as some operators prefer this technology to the Cummins' SCR.

In August 2007 due to very large orders for the Enviro400, Alexander Dennis announced that the production of Enviro200 bodywork would be moved from the Alexander Dennis's plant at Falkirk to the recently acquired Plaxton factory at Scarborough. This means that the Scarborough factory once again bodying the Dart chassis, and bodying the MAN 14.240 both with the Plaxton Centro and Enviro200 bodies simultaneously.

In 2008, Alexander Dennis unveiled the hybrid-electric powered version of Enviro200 Dart (known as the Enviro200H, not to be confused with the TransBus Enviro200H which was unveiled in 2003) using BAE Systems's HybriDrive series drive system with Cummins ISBe 4-cylinder engine fitted for power generation.

From around 2009, most began to refer to the Enviro200 Dart simply as the "Alexander Dennis Enviro200". This creates confusion between the original TransBus model.

The orders
60 confirmed vehicles were ordered at the vehicle's launch, with options for up to 50 more being declared. The first Enviro200 Dart entered service in August 2006 with Leigh-based Jim Stones Coaches, and is a single 10.7m version of the model. The first in the London area were two 8.9m models with Sunray Travel, for route 516 which was newly won from September 2006. The first for a Transport for London contract were six 10.2m Enviro200 Darts for Travel London for use on route 152 in December 2006. Another early customer for the Enviro200 Dart was East Yorkshire Motor Services, taking four 10.7m examples in December 2006 and eight 10.7m examples in 2007. Now most operators of London Buses routes own Enviro200 Darts.

The Enviro200 Dart was also sold for export. In January 2007 Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation of Hong Kong ordered 11 Enviro200 Dart for delivery in 2008, they are 11.3 metres in length and entered service in 2008/2009. Bus Éireann of Ireland received 23 in 2008/2009. One demonstrator had been exported to Australia.

For the Enviro200-bodied MAN 14.240, Stagecoach ordered 50 example in 2007 (for delivery in 2008) and 32 in 2008, making it one of the standard Stagecoach midibuses. These have rounded instead of squared gasket glazing.