Scotland funds 83 low carbon buses
The Scottish Government has allocated £3.7m towards the cost of purchasing another 83 low carbon emission buses. Nine operators have been awarded the money through round five of the Scottish Green Bus Fund. This year’s successful bidders include: First Glasgow, Wilson’s of Rhu, Secure Airparks, First Scotland East, Lothian Buses, Stagecoach North Scotland, Deveron Coaches and Orkney Islands Council. It will bring the total number of low carbon vehicles in Scotland’s eco-friendly bus fleet to 209.
Regional MD for First UK Bus in Scotland and North England, Dave Alexander, said, ‘This is welcome news for customers travelling with First Glasgow and First Scotland East. The Scottish Green Bus Fund is a fantastic initiative and will support our £7.8m investment in 52 state of the art green vehicles. We’re especially pleased to welcome electric buses into our Scottish fleet for the first time. At First we are committed to reducing our carbon footprint and in partnership with manufacturers helped bring to market the StreetLite micro-hybrid vehicles, one of the world’s most fuel efficient buses, which are already in service in Glasgow, Scotland East and Aberdeen. Scottish Green Bus funding will help us invest in a further 43 of these buses.’