Cities share £28m grant for zero emissions buses

New zero emission buses are to be introduced in Sheffield and Bradford after the government awarded the cities a shared grant of £28m for the vehicles.

Both cities have introduced clean air zones (CAZ) in response to pollution levels and the Department for Transport said the money would help improve air quality.

Sheffield will get £20m of the funding, with Bradford getting the remaining £8m.

Susan Hinchcliffe, Bradford Council leader, said she was "delighted" government ministers understood the importance of clean air, while Tom Hunt, leader of Sheffield City Council, said new buses were "essential to further reduce pollution".

Government said the cash was in addition to £3.6m of transport money for West and South Yorkshire already announced in the June spending review.

A DfT spokesperson said the investment would bring "smoother and quieter journeys for passengers and improve local air quality" across the two cities, which both suffered from "poor air quality".

Bradford Council was ordered to improve the city's air quality by government in 2018, with a CAZ introduced in 2022.

Sheffield's CAZ was introduced in February 2023.

Emma Hardy, Air Quality Minister, said the government was "determined to protect communities from the harm that breathing in dirty air brings".

"This vital investment is helping to transform the bus networks for the cities of Bradford and Sheffield, providing residents with greener alternatives that will boost the local economy and deliver cleaner air," she said.

The number of buses the money will fund has not yet been announced.

Hunt said the grant was "great news for Sheffield".

"It will mean we can get more zero emission electric buses on our streets, replacing older, polluting, diesel buses," he said.

Meanwhile, Hinchcliffe, said the buses would "accelerate" improvements in air quality.

"The clean air zone has improved our air quality hugely and resulted in people needing to visit GPs less with respiratory problems," she said.

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