Passengers across the East Midlands will enjoy cleaner, more reliable and more comfortable bus journeys as the Government delivers more than £25 million to roll out new state-of-the-art electric buses in the region.
Transport Secretary Mark Harper has confirmed that 177 zero-emission buses will hit the road as four Councils across the East Midlands receive £25.4 million to decarbonise their bus fleet.
From Derbyshire to Leicestershire, from Nottinghamshire to West Northamptonshire, the new investment will help make local buses across the East Midlands more modern, cleaner and more reliable, improving the local journeys that so many people rely on.
Derbyshire is being allocated £5.1m for 57 vehicles, whilst Nottinghamshire is set to receive £2.8m for 23 vehicles.
The funding is part of the £143 million investment from the second round of the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) programme, which will see new electric buses across towns, villages and cities across England, many of which will get zero-emission buses for the first time.
Thanks to the ZEBRA scheme, no other European country registered as many electric buses in 2023 as the UK, with zero-emission buses accounting for almost half of all new large buses introduced last year, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
The funding comes on top of over £128 million to improve bus services in the East Midlands from the Department’s Bus Service Improvement Plan.
The new electric buses come shortly after £2.5 billion of reallocated HS2 funding from the Local Transport Fund which will be invested directly into the Midlands, to invest in improvements such as refurbishing local bus stations and improve local connections for more people, in more places, more quickly.
The funding is in addition to more than £3.5 billion the Government has been investing since 2020 to protect and improve bus services in England. The £2 bus fare cap has also been extended all the way to 31 December 2024 and a further £1 billion is being invested to improve bus services in the North and the Midlands, both made possible by reallocated HS2 funding.
Transport Secretary Mark Harper said: “As part of our plan to improve local transport in the East Midlands, we’re providing over £25 million to roll out 177 brand new zero-emission buses across the region.
“This latest investment into our bus fleet comes on top of the £3.5 billion we have invested into our bus network since 2020, protecting and improving bus routes into 2025 as well as extending the £2 bus fare cap until the end of 2024, made possible by reallocated HS2 funding.”
The new funding follows over £35 million to roll out 184 electric buses in the East Midlands from the first round of ZEBRA funding, taking the total number of electric buses directly funded by Government in the region to 361.
To make sure more parts of the country benefit from better buses and green technology, particularly rural areas where the journey towards decarbonising buses is in its early stages, the Government has prioritised the first £40 million for rural communities.
These state-of-the-art buses will also improve the passenger experience, providing users with considerably quieter and more comfortable journeys. The new zero-emission buses will also drive on smoother roads thanks to £8.3 billion to resurface over 5,000 miles of roads in England over the next decade, the biggest ever funding uplift to improve local roads, all thanks to reallocated HS2 funding.
The new zero-emission buses will not only be cleaner, helping improve local air quality both for bus users and the local communities, but they will also be more modern and replace older diesel buses.
They will also meet Enhanced Accessibility Standards, and will come with the latest passenger experience features such as wi-fi and USB charging sockets.
Alison Edwards, Director of Policy & External Relations at the Confederation of Passenger Transport said: “CPT welcomes this support from Government to help accelerate vital public and private investment in new zero emissions vehicles and charging infrastructure. The transition to a zero emissions bus fleet is a huge opportunity for Britain to lead the world in creating a modern zero emission bus network that offers a growing number of passengers one of the most sustainable forms of transport.”
Andrew Godley, Commercial Planning and Development Director at Arriva UK Bus said: “It’s fantastic news that we’ve been successful in our bid for funding to build on our existing fleet in Leicester. Public transport is vital in supporting the country to decarbonise, and this ZEBRA funding will help to deliver the sustainable and high-performing services that our customers across the Midlands deserve.”