The UK government has announced a significant funding boost of £143 million to support the procurement of 955 new zero-emission buses across 25 local authorities in England. This funding, part of the second round of the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) programme, aims to enhance public transport and reduce emissions in urban and rural areas.
Originally budgeted at £129 million when the second funding round was announced in September 2023, the actual awarded funding exceeded expectations by £16.3 million. Of the total funding, £40 million will be dedicated to rural areas, facilitating the purchase of 318 zero-emission vehicles. This allocation marks a substantial increase from the initially planned £25 million, with the possibility of increasing the budget to £50 million.
Following the publication of the list of successful bidders, it was revealed that 58 applications were received from public transport authorities, including joint applications. West Sussex County Council secured the highest commitment of over £10 million, albeit narrowly at £10.1 million. Other significant recipients include Plymouth City Council (£9.5 million), West Northamptonshire Council (£9.4 million), and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (£9.4 million). Tees Valley Combined Authority is set to procure the highest number of subsidised electric buses, with 62 buses financed through ZEBRA 2.
Under the ZEBRA programme, the Department for Transport is subsidising up to 75% of the additional costs of zero-emission buses compared to conventional diesel buses of the same class. The deadline for ordering the vehicles is 31 January 2025, with a requirement that they be emission-free, whether battery-electric or fuel cell.
Transport Minister Mark Harper expressed the government’s commitment to improving local transport, stating, “As part of our plan to improve local transport across the country, we’re providing a further £143 million to improve journeys for bus passengers particularly in rural areas, with almost a thousand brand new, zero emission buses due to hit the road.”
This funding injection builds on the success of the first tranche of funding, where £268 million was allocated to 16 local authorities, resulting in the procurement of over 1,300 locally emission-free buses. The programme has already had a positive impact on new registrations in 2023, contributing to the government’s efforts to enhance public transport and reduce emissions.
