Request ID: FOI-1976-2122 Date published: 14 December 2021
You asked
Can you provide information on the roll-out schedule of electric fleet post the Mayor’s announcement in September that all new buses will be electric?
1. Will operators be required to purchase/lease electric buses as part of their contracts?
2. Will the roll-out wait until the bus life expires before switching to electric buses?
3. Does TfL plan to order its electric buses from only UK manufacturers?
We answered
Our ref: FOI-1976-2122/GH
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 26 November 2021 asking for information about the London Electric Buses Roll-Out.
Your request has been considered under the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and our information access policy. I can confirm that we do hold the information you require.
1. Will operators be required to purchase/lease electric buses as part of their contracts? From now on, operators will need to procure or lease zero-emission buses if they successfully bid for routes with new vehicles. This is subject to the latest funding deal with the Department for Transport continuing to support this approach.
2. Will the roll-out wait until the bus life expires before switching to electric buses? Our current plan anticipates the bus fleet going zero tailpipe emission not later than 2034 and the continued use of existing vehicles during this transition timeframe. This will see the vast majority of vehicles reaching their normal life expiry points before being replaced with new vehicles. This plan is flexible so that we can take advantage of potentially economically-attractive bids from operators for new zero emission vehicles and supporting infrastructure rather than pre-determined, so a very small number of mid-life vehicles may be replaced early or be redeployed elsewhere.
3. Does TfL plan to order its electric buses from only UK manufacturers? Our private bus operators, not TfL, place orders from manufacturers of their choice. This means they make the commercial and competitive choices in the vehicles they select in accordance with their vehicle fleet strategies.
If this is not the information you are looking for, please do not hesitate to contact me.
If you are not satisfied with this response please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.
Yours sincerely
Graham Hurt FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
