BIOGAS BUSES HIT CITY ROADS
ALMOST 80 NEW VEHICLES RUN ON BIO-METHANE
THE first of a fleet of 77 new buses powered by bio-methane have hit the roads of Bristol.
The new buses will all be used on routes out of the Lawrence Hill depot in east Bristol, thanks to a new gas fueling station constructed there.
The first buses have been getting used to the roads of Bristol on the m3 metrobus route, and refueling at the Parson Street premises of Bristol Community Transport, but when the new First Bus gas station opens this weekend in Lawrence Hill, it will mean the buses of east Bristol and the city’s northern fringe are all powered by biomethane instead of diesel.
First Bus said these buses cut the greenhouse gas emissions by 85 per cent, and have been rolled out as part of the company’s ongoing commitment to improving air quality. A total of 27 of the new buses will replace all the buses currently running along Church Road to St George and out into east Bristol – the 42, 43, 44 and 45.
“This second and larger-capacity facility is a crucial next stage in our biomethane journey. It means we can roll out cleaner, greener vehicles and contribute substantially to help clean up the local air,” said First Bus boss James Freeman.
“As we are now able to fuel more biomethane-powered gas vehicles than we currently have in our fleets, we are looking to open the facility up to other, third party commercial operations in the future. Indeed, we are already in negotiation with one organisation already.”
“We’re really putting the West of England at the forefront of clean commercial fleets,” he added.
“Meanwhile, I am also delighted that we have been able to deploy this next batch of buses – 40 in all on routes in the east of the city and into South Gloucestershire, bringing the very latest equipment to many thousands of our customers each week from next week,” he added.
Replacing diesel buses on these routes with a total of 77 biogas buses has cost a total of £28 million over three years, and was part-funded by a Government grant of £4.79 million given to South Gloucestershire and Bristol City councils.
The West of England Mayor Tim Bowles said: “It’s fantastic to see even more biogas buses getting out and about and the infrastructure to support them.
“These brand new, low emission buses not only make customers’ journeys better, but also dramatically improve air quality and cut carbon emissions compared to diesel buses.
“They support my ambition to improve public transport and give people more sustainable ways to travel to keep our region moving.
“We’re already seeing more than 100,000 passenger journeys being made by metrobus every week, with the latest passenger survey showing that it has taken 19,000 car journeys off the road. I want to build on that success with more services and better connections as part of my wider objective of getting more people to switch to using public transport across the West of England.”
The Mayor of Bristol Marvin Rees was the first city leader to declare a climate emergency last year, and said this was a key part of reducing Bristol’s carbon footprint.
“We welcome this significant investment in cleaner buses and infrastructure as part of our drive to reduce air pollution,” he said.
Local MP Kerry McCarthy said the investment would be putting East Bristol at the forefront of efforts to clean up Bristol.
“This announcement is a win / win for communities in the east of Bristol, and the city as a whole.”