Cardiff could get more electric buses through a huge £8million grant. A new scheme, which was approved by Cardiff Council's Cabinet at its meeting on October 20, will allow bus operators to bid for Welsh Government funds to help increase the number of electric buses operating in the city.
Cardiff Bus unveiled its first zero-emissions buses in January and they are set to save 650,000 tonnes over the lifetime of their operation, which is expected to be 12 to 15 years. Now, all bus companies operating in Cardiff could be given the opportunity to bid for the funding.
Both Welsh Government and Cardiff Council want all buses operating in Cardiff to produce zero emissions by 2035. Cllr Dan De'Ath, Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning and Transport, said: "The council set out its Bus Strategy in November last year. We want to increase the number of people travelling by bus in Cardiff and our strategy aims to do this by:
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- Introducing cheaper fares;
- Partnering with Transport for Wales to develop an integrated ticketing system which works with the Metro and OVO Bikes;
- Getting more low emission buses on the network;
- Building the infrastructure to make bus travel easier and quicker, and:
- Improving the customer experience.
"The Council has engaged with all of Cardiff's bus operators to let them know about this exciting funding opportunity. Now that the cabinet has agreed, we will use this feedback from the bus operators to set the criteria for the application process and get these new electric vehicles onto the network as quickly as possible."
The council worked with the Department for Transport's Ultra-Low Emissions Bus Scheme to help support Cardiff Bus to bring 36 new electric buses into its fleet in January this year. The Department for Transport made £5.7m available through the scheme.
"We all now know how important it is for our health to improve air quality. We also know that we need to reduce the use of private cars if we want to ease congestion. Making public transport a more attractive and viable option is key to helping us do that. We want to make travel by bus quicker, cheaper and easier for the public to use in and around the city," Cllr De'Ath, added.
"By working with bus operators and making best use of all available funding opportunities this council is doing everything it can to help the trade move towards cleaner, zero-emission electric buses." All bus operators will now be set a timeframe for the application process, with a deadline set for final costs to be submitted to Cardiff Council by October 2023.
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