Switch Mobility

Optare Rapta

Switch Mobility (Optare until 2020) is a British bus manufacturer based in Sherburn-in-Elmet, North Yorkshire. It is a subsidiary of Indian company Ashok Leyland. The company is responsible for the EV operations of the group with Ashok Leyland focusing on its core business of diesel-powered vehicles as well as work on alternative fuels like compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG) and hydrogen. After being rebranded from Optare to Switch Mobility in November 2020, it announced plans in 2021 to set up a plant in India for its electric vehicle business. Later, it acquired the EV division from parent company Ashok Leyland via a slump sale of 2.4 billion rupees (~£23 million). Switch Mobility has two subsidiary companies. The first subsidiary is Switch Mobility Automotive Ltd, which brings together Ashok Leyland's Indian based EV operations with the expertise of the UK-based bus manufacturing division. The second subsidiary is named OHM Global Mobility Private Ltd which provides Mobility as a Service (eMaaS) solutions in India.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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History

=== Formation of Optare === In September 1984, Leyland Bus closed its Charles H Roe vehicle bodywork building business in Leeds. In response, Russell Richardson, a former plant director at Roe, backed by the West Yorkshire Enterprise Board and many redundant former employees, formed Optare in February 1985. The company was created at a very difficult time for the bus and coach industry, with the challenges of privatisation and deregulation meaning very few orders for new vehicles. The first orders came from the still publicly owned West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (WYPTE) and South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE). The publicly owned but arms-length company Yorkshire Rider, as successor to the WYPTE bus fleet, also took early vehicles. When the Roe business closed down, WYPTE had an unfulfilled order for five Leyland Olympian coach-seated double-decker buses in place for its Metro coach operation. These five part finished buses went from Roe to Eastern Coach Works as shells for completion, but subsequently ten more were completed as Optare buses but to the Roe design, the first of which was completed in September 1985, the 17th Optare bus body. Five went to WYPTE, and five to its successor Yorkshire Rider, and a further five standard seated Olympians were also delivered to WYPTE, two as convertible open top buses. The first Optare designed bodies were fourteen Dennis Dominos for the SYPTE built starting in February 1986. Optare also bodied fifteen Leyland Cubs for the WYPTE. A preserved Cub later visited the Optare plant in 2005. Starting in August 1986, Optare built fifteen minibuses converted from the Freight Rover Sherpa 350 vans for the WYPTE. Early minibuses. In 1986, Optare introduced the CityPacer minibus. This was based on a heavier ve

Optare product support

The Optare parts and service division Unitec has locations at the former Rotherham factory, as well as in Thurrock, Essex. Since 1997, many of Optare's electrical systems have been designed and constructed in collaboration with Actia.

Coach imports

In August 2008, the minicoach models Toro, Solera and Soroco were imported by Optare from the Spanish manufacturer Ferqui, and marketed as Optare products. They were luxury minicoach bodies built on Mercedes-Benz chassis, however, due to significantly reduced demand for mini and midi coaches, as part of its restructuring process, Optare took the decision to concentrate on its bus manufacturing activities and the relationship with Ferqui was formally ended in 2012.

Products

=== Buses === Current Solo SR; Solo SR EV (2007–present) Metrocity; Metrocity EV (2012–present) Metrodecker; Metrodecker EV (2014–present) E1 single decker (2022–present) EiV 12 single decker (2022–present, for the Indian market) EiV 22 double decker (2022–present, for the Indian market) EiV 7 (2023–present, for the Indian market) Discontinued CityPacer minibus (1985–1992, replaced by the MetroRider) StarRider minibus (1987–1994, replaced by the MetroRider) ColumboRider integral variant for export to Sri Lanka (1987–1994, replaced by the MetroRider) Delta single decker (1988–1999) MetroRider minibus (1989–2000, replaced by Solo) 9000-series minibus on Renault chassis for Leeds City Council (1990, replaced by the MetroRider) Spectra double decker (1991–1997, low floor 1997–2005) Vecta midibus (1991–1997) Sigma (1994–1996, single-deck version of the Spectra) Prisma (1995–1998) single decker, Mercedes front Excel (1995–1999) (Excel 2 1999–2004, replaced by Tempo) Solo low floor midibus (1997–2012, replaced by restyled SR model) (Solo+ (2008) Concept only) (Solo EV 2009–2012 Replaced by restyled SR EV model) Alero low floor minibus, (Alero 2001–2006, Alero Plus 2006–2008) Irisbus Agora Line ((2002–2007) right-hand-drive version bodied by Optare, 23 were built for the UK) Tempo single decker (2004–2012) Tempo SR (2011–2020, Oceanian market only since 2017) Versa, midibus between Solo and Tempo (2007–2018) Esteem single decker (formerly East Lancs Esteem) (2008–2009) Olympus double decker (formerly East Lancs Olympus) (2008–2011) Visionaire open-top double decker (formerly East Lancs Visionaire) (2008–2011) OmniDekka double decker (formerly East Lancs Omnidekka) (2008–2011, only adopted by Nottingham City Transport) Rapta double decker ((2009) Concept only) Coaches. Disconti

Sections adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); text is shortened. Read the full article for the complete history and citations.

More photos

Sources

Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7098762CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switch_MobilityCC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1372764650 · retrieved 2026-10-01
Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.