Two of London’s bus routes are becoming exclusively electric, as the capital’s electric bus fleet becomes the largest in Europe.
Route 43, which runs from Friern Barnet to London Bridge Station, and Route 134, which runs from North Finchley bus station to Tottenham Court Road, will become the UK’s first bus routes to use only electric double-deck buses this autumn.
London currently has more than 200 electric buses, making it Europe’s largest electric bus fleet, and this will grow further next year as Transport for London (TfL) has awarded contracts to operators for a further 78 electric double-deck buses.
Low Emission Bus Zones at Chiswick High Road and Uxbridge Road have also been completed, which means that TfL has delivered all 12 Low Emission Bus Zones earlier than planned – the previous target was 2020.
This initiative is part of a £300m plan to transform London’s entire bus fleet, which is set to reduce bus NOx emissions London-wide by an average of 90% by October 2020.
Gareth Powell, TfL’s managing director for surface transport, said: “These new buses mark a major moment on the road to a fully zero-emission fleet. With more electric double-deck buses to follow, and all new single deck buses required to be zero-emissions from next year, buses are helping to bring the capital’s air inside legal limits.
“The benefits these new vehicles will bring build on the highly effective Low Emission Bus Zones. The zones have resulted in Londoners breathing significantly cleaner air in parts of the city most blighted by the scourge of filthy fumes, and next year all 9,000 buses in London will be contributing to cleaner air.”
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has committed to making all buses within the M25 zero emission by 2037. However, to deliver benefits in the short term, TfL’s £85m bus retrofit programme will see all of the capital’s 9,000 buses meet or exceed tough Euro VI emission standard by October 2020. This effectively means the whole of London will become a Low Emission Bus Zone.
TfL is also investing £12m in 20 new hydrogen double-deck buses, built by Wrightbus in Northern Ireland. These are set to commence operations next year.
