SCOTTISH COLUMN
A second and final round of the Scottish government’s Zero Emission Bus Challenge Fund (ScotZEB 2) has resulted in £41.7million being awarded in July for the delivery of 252 new zero-emission buses and coaches and associated charging infrastructure by the end of 2026.
Ten consortium bids, bringing together businesses from the bus, energy and financial sectors, were submitted for the funding, which has been reduced from the originally intended £58million. Eight were rejected by the end of last year and the consortium led by Zenob Energy was the winner in a final bidding process ScotZEB 2 is the first grant funding scheme in the UK to offer support for zero-emission coaches other than those used on scheduled services and the new vehicles will be operated by consortium members D&E Coaches, Ember Core, Hairy Haggis, Maynes Coaches, McGill’s, NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde, Premier Coaches and Stagecoach.
Zenob will administer the funding among the consortium members, install new charging infrastructure, provide support for electric vehicle operation, together with tailored financing structures to reduce upfront and lifetime costs of electric fleets.
The grant-funded charging infrastr…
