£40m funding for zero emission buses in Scotland
The Scottish Government has awarded £40.5 million through a second round of the Scottish Ultra-Low Emission Bus Scheme (SULEBS).
Highways-news.com reports that this is the largest investment yet through the SULEBS programme, and will support operators in replacing 215 old diesel buses with new battery-electric models. This is a substantial increase on the 57 buses supported through the first round and to help meet demand, the intended budget for this second round has been increased by £15 million.
With 172 of the buses to be built in Falkirk, this investment supports skilled, green manufacturing jobs in Scotland, as well as reducing transport emissions.
The Scottish Government has also published a new information and ideas pack which shows how the bus and finance sectors are innovating to speed up the transition to net-zero. This is the first report from The Bus Decarbonisation Taskforce, which brings together senior leaders from the energy, bus and finance sectors to co-design a pathway to a fully decarbonised bus fleet. The information pack identifies new routes for financing green buses that can build on government support and bring about faster fleet transformation.
Image courtesy of Transport Scotland.
