United Kingdom: Massive Investment in E-Bus Fleets

The British government has announced the funding of five local transport authorities under the "Zero Emission Bus Regional Area" program, allocating nearly £71 million in funding to implement the project and order up to 335 electric buses. The funds are part of the £270 million set aside in the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year for the introduction of zero-emission buses and the necessary infrastructure.

The local transport authorities benefiting from the Zebra funding are Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (£4.3 million), Kent County Council (£9.5 million), Leicester City Council (as reported by busplaner) (£19 million), Milton Keynes Borough Council (£16 million), and Warrington Borough Council (£21.5 million).

In his budget statement, British Chancellor Rishi Sunak confirmed that an additional £355 million would be available for the introduction of zero-emission buses. However, the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) doubts whether the government's funding plans will be sufficient to meet its self-imposed target of 4,000 zero-emission buses by 2025.