Local MP, Dame Caroline Dinenage, welcomes the fact that almost 1,000 new green buses will be rolled-out across twelve areas throughout the country – benefiting millions of people. This is thanks to the Conservative Government’s £200 million Zero Emission Buses Regional Area (ZEBRA) scheme.
Portsmouth City Council and Hampshire County Council will receive new funding to deliver 34 new electric or hydrogen powered buses – benefiting thousands of passengers, slashing emissions, upgrading local transport networks, and making buses cheaper and more accessible for passengers.
The move is expected to remove over 57,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year from the country’s air, as Government continues to go further and faster to achieve net zero, clean up the transport network and deliver a better service for passengers.
The funding is part of the government's £3billion plan to significantly improve bus services, with new priority lanes, lower and simpler fares, more integrated ticketing and higher frequencies. Jobs in the bus manufacturing industry–based largely in Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England–will be supported as a result of the move.
Zero-emission buses are also cheaper to run, improving the economics for bus operators. This announcement builds on almost £71 million already provided by the ZEBRA scheme–meaning the Government is on track to deliver a total of 4,000 buses as part of the Prime Minister’s National Bus strategy – the most ambitious bus shake up in a generation.
Caroline said:
“As we commit to slashing emissions and reaching net zero, our local transport network must play its part.
This new funding for Portsmouth City Council and Hampshire will help deliver that – with 34 zero-emission buses – meaning we are well on track to phase out all non-zero-emission buses whilst upgrading our local transport network.
These new vehicles will not only aid our journey to net zero, but will deliver cheaper, cleaner, and more reliable service for passengers across Portsmouth City Council and Hampshire County Council.”
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said:
“I will level up and clean up our transport network. That’s why I have announced hundreds of millions of pounds to roll out zero emission buses nationwide.
“Not only will this improve the experience of passengers, but it will help support our mission to fund4,000 of these cleaner buses, reach net zero emissions by 2050 and build back greener.
“Today’s announcement is part of our National Bus Strategy which will introduce lower fares, helping drive down the cost of public transport even further for passengers”
