The 24 electric vehicles are set to save nearly 1,500 tonnes of CO2e per year as they replace older diesel buses. Aberdeen’s King Street depot have installed 16 dual headed rapid DC charging points to accommodate the new arrivals, which have been manufactured by Yutong and are fitted with lithium iron phosphate batteries boasting a range of over 370 kilometres on a single, three-hour charge.
As well as providing an environmentally friendly way to travel round the city, passengers in Aberdeen will also benefit from greater levels of comfort with these new buses, with lower noise levels and full air conditioning fitted throughout.
The new vehicles were launched into service by Aberdeen City Council Co-Leaders Cllr Christian Allard and Cllr Ian Yuill alongside First Bus Scotland Managing Director Duncan Cameron.
“The arrival of these buses marks the latest in our series of steps to decarbonise our operations as we aim to be emission free by 2035” said Duncan Cameron, Managing Director at First Bus Scotland. “We are incredibly proud to bring more sustainable travel to Aberdeen joining the hydrogen buses already in operation, and I’m sure it will encourage even more people to leave cars behind in favour of environmentally conscious bus travel that will help to reduce congestion and improve air quality in our city. We’re looking forward to hearing feedback from our customers as we continue our investment into greener travel.”
The delivery has been supported by Transport Scotland through its Scottish Zero Emission Bus (ScotZEB) funding, a challenge fund to support the industry’s swift transition to zero emission vehicles and infrastructure.
Aberdeen City Council Co-Leader Councillor Ian Yuill added that the new electric buses will make a positive contribution as Aberdeen moves towards its net zero targets.
“First’s investment in non-polluting electric buses not only reduce the emissions on our roads” said Mr Yuill. “It will hopefully encourage more people onto the bus and out of their cars as they move around Aberdeen.”
More electric vehicles will also be joining First Bus’s operations further afield, with First Glasgow’s Scotstoun depot currently receiving delivery of 50 new electric vehicles, adding to the 150 already in operation from its Caledonia depot.
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