A new fleet of 24 electric buses acquired by Nottingham City Transport (NCT) is expected to start operating by the end of March.
The first 12 single-deck units are set to enter service by late January, with the remaining 12 following two months later.
It’s worth noting that the new Yutong units cost around 400,000 pounds each.
These units, with a range of up to 445 kilometers, will be deployed on the Pink 30, Blue 39, and Red 50 routes.
The total cost of the electric bus project, including both the new buses and the infrastructure, amounts to 34 million pounds, as reported by the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
Approximately 15.2 million pounds of the cost comes from the Department for Transport’s regional zero-emission bus fund, while the remaining 18.8 million pounds is NCT’s own investment.
During a Tuesday meeting of the Nottingham City Council’s executive committee on business governance, managing director David Astill mentioned that government funding was a “huge incentive,” but plans to convert the entire fleet to electric would only be feasible if the funding continued.
“We already have the world’s largest fleet of biogas-powered buses, with 143 currently,” he stated.
“To help Nottingham achieve its carbon-neutral by 2028 aspirations, we aim to replace the diesel fleet by 2028, which is within four years,” he added.
Within two years, NCT plans to commission double-decker electric buses to further expand the fleet.
Another 24 single-deck buses have also been order and will be delivered in 2025, bringing the total to 48.
