Government announces funding for 'greener' buses; £30m for Net Zero projects in Spending Round 2019
Wed 04 September 2019
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Chancellor Sajid Javid, announcing the 2019 Spending Round, said that there will be £200m funding to "transform bus services" and an additional £30m funding to "accelerate progress on developing decarbonisation schemes that will help to move the UK towards its Net Zero greenhouse gas emissions target by 2050".
The Spending Review publication states that there will be: "£200 million of increased funding to transform bus services, making best use of technology and promoting decarbonisation, to help people make the everyday journeys that matter most to them."
The £200 million is part of a £490m ‘cash increase’ promised for the UK’s transport network.
In terms of how the funding will be used, Route One (a publication focusing on the bus sector) reported that "Details so far are light". It reports that Mr Javid said: “We’re funding ultra-low emissions buses and will trial new, on-demand services to respond to passenger needs in real time.”
The Government’s website says the £490m “includes extra funding to make buses more environmentally friendly, rail track maintenance to ensure more reliable journeys, and continued support for development of major projects.”
Also included in the statement was the promise of "more than £30 million increase in funding for air quality". The money forms part of the funding settlement for Defra, which saw a 3.3% increase in real terms to its resource budget.
This new money will provide additional funding for local authorities who have been directed to tackle their NO2 exceedances, a Treasury official confirmed to AirQualityNews.
The Chancellor said that details of the additional £30 million to support the Net Zero target will be set out in the National Infrastructure Strategy this autumn.
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