Operators which will benefit from the recent electric bus funding round will include Go-Ahead, First Bus, White Bus and Falcon Buses
Go-Ahead, in partnership with the Department for Transport and local authorities, is among those operators benefiting from the announcements of funding allocations from the Government’s ZEBRA2 scheme, and will invest in an additional 45 zero-emissions buses for its operating companies in Hull, Salisbury, Brighton & Hove, Isle of Wight and Plymouth, adding to around 1,500 zero-emission vehicles already in operation or on order.
Local Transport Minister Simon Lightwood visited the company’s East Yorkshire Buses division to hear about its plans to decarbonise the bus network across the region. East Yorkshire Buses, Salisbury Reds, Brighton & Hove Buses, Southern Vectis and Plymouth CityBus will all enjoy new buses. CEO of Go-Ahead Bus Matt Carney commented: “Our leadership and commitment to zero-emission transport is something we’re extremely proud of at Go-Ahead. We’re very grateful to the Department for Transport and our local authorities for this partnership, which will give more customers access to cleaner, greener public transport across the country.”
Minister Lightwood commented: “Our investment will deliver new zero-emission buses to communities across England by 2027. This funding will not only make bus travel cleaner, greener, and more comfortable, but it will also create jobs, support local economies, and accelerate our journey towards a zero-emission future. From Hull to Hove, there’s an electrifying future on the way for our buses.”
Southern Vectis, in partnership with Isle of Wight Council, has announced that it has secured investment for a further nine double-decker electric buses and associated infrastructure on the Isle of Wight, adding to 22 electric buses already funded through the ZEBRA scheme. The nine extra buses will mainly be used on the island’s routes 4, 8 and 37 and are expected to begin operation in 2026. A further five chargers with 10 additional charging points will be installed at the operator’s Newport depot. The project to provide the extra buses is expected to cost around £3.8m in total, with both Southern Vectis and Isle of Wight Council contributing the additional funds.
“This is excellent news for the Isle of Wight, and it will further drive our mission to put the island right at the forefront of sustainable transport,” said Southern Vectis Managing Director Andrew Wickham. “The additional joint investment is testament to the excellent relationship we have with Isle of Wight Council, and we will continue to work together to ensure the Isle of Wight’s bus network remains the envy of other areas of the United Kingdom.”
First Bus
First Bus is also receiving money from the latest round of zero-emission funding, and is investing £70m in a further 160 zero-emission buses in the West of England, growing the First Bus zero-emission local fleet to over 250 vehicles.
In partnership with the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority, an additional £20m has been secured through the latest round of the Zero Emission Bus Regional Area (ZEBRA) scheme, and following the electrification of its Weston Island (Bath) and Lawrence Hill (Bristol) depots, four out of the company’s five regional depots will be electrified by next year, First Bus reports, with the area running a total of 258 zero-emission vehicles.
Janette Bell, Managing Director at First Bus, said: “We’ve reached a significant milestone today as we invest further in our journey towards a zero-emission bus fleet. We’re thrilled that our people and customers in the West of England will benefit from government co-funding for these transformative projects. It’s been a tremendous joint effort from us and our combined authority partners to get here and we cannot wait to get these vehicles out into service.
“We already have over 1,000 zero-emission buses on the road serving our customers and this latest investment is another exciting step forward. I am delighted for our colleagues across the region as we continue our transformation of the fleet and the depots, and our customers who get to enjoy the benefits, from improved air quality to a smoother, quieter ride.”
Surrey investments
Following a successful bid, Surrey County Council has been awarded an additional £1.7m for 12 new zero-emission buses in its area, adding to a previous allocation in 2024 and taking Surrey’s total provision to over £5 million and 31 new buses. Along with the 34 hydrogen buses already operating across the county, and a further 23 coming into service this summer, the latest funding will see 88 zero-emission buses operating on Surrey’s roads.
Matt Furniss, Cabinet Member for Transport, Infrastructure and Growth at Surrey County Council said: “I’m delighted that Surrey will benefit from this extra funding which will help us to build upon our own significant investment in providing cleaner buses. Introducing these buses to our fleet is expected to deliver an estimated carbon saving of around 112,000 tonnes over the life of the buses, which is great news for Surrey residents and for everyone else travelling in and out of our county.
“We’ve also invested £6.3m in more ultra-low and zero emission community transport minibuses, £9m in bus priority measures to ensure Surrey buses turn up on time, and £1.4m in improving information for passengers at bus stops. Richard Telling, Managing Director of Falcon Buses, added: “Through the partnership working with Surrey County Council, we are now enhancing our roll out of zero-emission buses, introducing 21 electric buses into our fleet. Financial investment from Falcon Buses, together with SCC and DfT has enabled us to place orders with Alexander Dennis for the supply of their brand new Enviro200EV next generation bus and we will see electric buses operating on a number of our services from spring 2026. Exciting times are ahead for Falcon operating new technology with electric buses, and we look forward to our customers coming on the journey with us.”
CEO of White Bus Simon Rowland said: “We are incredibly excited about our new electric vehicle fleet coming later this year. Not only is White Bus providing greener, cleaner vehicles, but also giving our passengers the additional comfort of quieter vehicles. Our 446 and 555 will be the first routes to use the new Yutong E10s, and they will be branded in the green Flightline livery as part of other service improvements in partnership with Surrey County Council and Heathrow. Our thanks to DfT and Surrey County Council for their support in helping White Bus make the transition to a greener future.”
