Switch Mobility Ltd, Sherburn-in-Elmet: Manufacturing site near Leeds facing closure due to 'tepid' electric bus sales
A bus manufacturer has announced that it could close its facility in a town near Leeds as it faces “tepid” sales of electric vehicles in the UK.
Switch Mobility Ltd UK has announced that it has commenced a consultation with employees that could lead to the closure of the site on Hurricane Way in Sherburn-in-Elmet.
The parent company, Ashok Leyland, has said that the decision has been made in the wake of “economic uncertainty” in the UK and a “slower than expected transition to electric vehicles in public transport”.
Industry magazine Coach and Bus Weekly says that the company currently employs around 200 people at the North Yorkshire site, which opened in 2011.
Ashoka Leyland has said that it wants to instead focus its efforts in India, where the electrical bus market is doing “exceptionally well”.
It says that when the UK market recovers it will cater for it from its manufacturing sites in India and the United Arab Emirates.
Mr. Shenu Agarwal, MD and CEO, Ashok Leyland, said, “While Ashok Leyland remained committed to the UK market over the last 15 years, adoption of zero emission passenger vehicles has been tepid.
“This seems to be the right time to cut down losses in the UK market.”