Oxford Bus Company electric transition improves air quality

Oxford Bus Company’s new electric fleet covered four million kilometres in 2024 – the equivalent of travelling to the moon 11 times.

 The new fleet of 104 electric buses, introduced over the first half of 2024, prevented burning approximately 1,255,000 litres of diesel fuel - saving more than 3,175 tonnes of CO2 emissions in the process over the course of the year. The vehicles are used on its city fleets, BROOKESbus service and City Sightseeing Oxford open-top tours.

This is the equivalent of the annual electricity use for more than 2,000 average UK family homes or charging more than 386,200 smart phones. 

At the current usage levels, the company estimates the fleet will cover six million kilometres this year, increasing the CO2 emissions reduction to an expected 4,750 tonnes during 2025.

The Go-Ahead Group, the parent company of Oxford Bus Company has a target to reduce emissions by 75% by 2035 and becoming a net-zero company by 2045. 

Luke Marion, Oxford Bus Company Managing Director, said: “This is another fantastic sustainability milestone following our ground breaking project to deliver our all-electric city fleet.

“We're making a really significant contribution to reducing emissions, and improving air quality in our city, and with the entire electric fleet due to be in service for the whole of this year, the benefits to the environment will increase further. I’m really proud of everyone who has helped us deliver this ambitious infrastructure project, which the community is now benefiting from.”

Oxford Bus Company, owned by the Go-Ahead Group, in partnership with Oxfordshire County Council, Oxford City Council and Stagecoach, worked in partnership to introduce 159 electric buses into service in total.

The County Council was awarded £32.8M from the government’s Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) scheme and contributed £6M directly, while bus operators invested £43.7M.

As part of the investment, a charging hub was installed at Oxford Bus Company’s Cowley House depot by Zenobē, the UK’s leading fleet electrification specialist, it is powered by EDF Energy’s Oxford Superhub network.

In 2020, Oxford Bus Company introduced the first electric bus to Oxford via its City Sightseeing Oxford fleet. It now has three retrofitted electric vehicles in its fleet, which were delivered in partnership with Oxford City Council.

An Oxford City Council air quality report recently revealed with NOx emissions from buses has decreased by more than half since 2013. Buses now contribute less pollution than cars in Oxford city centre.

Each electric bus delivers significant environmental benefits, primarily through zero tailpipe emissions. It means they do not emit harmful pollutants like nitrogen oxides and particulate matter, which are common in diesel buses. By reducing these emissions, electric buses contribute to cleaner air and a healthier environment.

Pollution experts recently estimated nearly 5000 premature deaths each year are caused by exhausts from vehicles in the UK.