Electric buses will be 'transformative' - council

The Department for Transport has announced £5.7m of funding to support the rollout of electric buses across East Yorkshire.

The money, which forms part of the government's Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas scheme, will go towards the cost of 40 electric buses and charging equipment.

Officials said the fleet would help improve air quality and make buses more appealing.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said the funding was in addition to £57m allocated for 260 electric buses for the wider Yorkshire and Humber region.

Councillor Mark Ieronimo, cabinet portfolio holder for transportation, roads and highways at Hull City Council, said the announcement would have a "transformative impact".

He added: “There are currently no electric or hybrid buses operating on public bus services in Hull so, in addition to the environmental benefits, the new vehicles will have a wider impact by changing how our residents, and visitors to the city, see buses and help encourage, and increase, passenger demand.”

The greener buses will replace diesel ones on public routes operated by Stagecoach and East Yorkshire Buses, officials said.

Councillor Paul West, East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s cabinet member for environment and transport, said: "Taking the bus instead of using cars already helps cut down on CO2 emissions, but this announcement is a major step forward in making public transport the most environmentally friendly way to travel.”

Further money for the vehicles will come from Hull City Council, Stagecoach and East Yorkshire Buses later this year.

Stagecoach said it aims to have a zero-emission fleet by 2035.

The latest announcement follows a government promise to reallocate £2.5bn of funding from the scrapped HS2 project to improve transport across the North of England.