Zero emission buses to be rolled out in Hampshire

Published by

Tom Kilkelly

Zero emission buses are to be rolled out in Hampshire following a £25m nationwide investment from the UK Government.

This latest investment brings the government’s total investment in zero emission buses up to £300m and brings the total number of zero emission buses up to 1,395 vehicles nationwide.

A total of 117 buses will be rolled out across Yorkshire, Norfolk and Hampshire as part of the latest drive.

The funding is an additional investment from the Zero Emissions Buses Regional Area scheme (ZEBRA), which was launched in 2021 to allow local transport authorities to bid for funding for zero emission buses and supporting infrastructure.

Portsmouth City Council and Hampshire County Council both received £6.2million to deliver 28 zero emission buses.

Roads Minister Richard Holden said: “Buses are the most popular form of public transport, and these new British-built zero emission buses will support hundreds of high-quality manufacturing jobs in Northern Ireland, grow our economy and help clean up the air in towns and cities across the country. "

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Zero emission buses, which are all battery electric, are not only beneficial for the environment but also cheaper to run, economically benefitting Bus Operators.

Managing Director at First Bus Janette Bell said: “We are delighted to be accelerating investment in the electrification of our bus fleet and infrastructure, supported by co-funding from the Department for Transport.

"As leaders in sustainable mobility, we are fully aligned with the Government’s ambitions for a net-zero carbon transport system. We are rapidly transforming our business with zero emission bus fleets and will continue to work closely with central and local government across the UK to deliver our decarbonisation plans.”

The buses were manufactured in Northern Ireland by Wrightbus and will be operated by FirstBus.

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Tom Kilkelly

Tom Kilkelly started working as a freelance journalist for The Business Magazine following his graduation from UCL in 2022. During his studies Tom became very interested in the works of Irish authors including Samuel Beckett and Flann O'Brien (Brian O'Nolan). His current role as a freelance business reporter is his first exposure to the world of business journalism. Working at TBM has given Tom the chance to really get to grips with the goings-on in the business hive that is the South East.