Xplore Dundee’s getting twelve fully electric double decker buses to improve the customer experience and help clean up the city’s air. These ‘Electric Emeralds’ will be deployed on one of the city’s most polluted streets, helping significantly in the fight to improve air quality.
“We plan to operate the Electric Emeralds on Service 28, a high-frequency route which uses Lochee Road and is an air quality blackspot in Dundee. Although buses only contribute to 5% of the emissions on this route, we are proud to be doing our bit to help clean up the air in this area. We hope these new buses will also attract more passengers, which will help take more cars off the road and reduce congestion, further helping to speed up public transport and improve air quality in our city,” said Managing Director Christine McGlasson.
“It’s really exciting to finally be bringing our first fleet of zero-emission buses to Dundee’s streets. We’re committed to making services better for our customers, with more comfortable, quiet vehicles, as well as contributing to public health and the fight against climate change. Cleaner buses means cleaner air in our city, which will benefit everyone.”
The new vehicles will be manufactured and built in Falkirk by Alexander Dennis Limited, and should arrive in Dundee later in 2021.
The £5.7 million investment in the electric buses and charging infrastructure is supported by the Scottish Government’s Ultra Low Emission Bus Scheme and Xplore Dundee’s new owners, McGill’s Buses, who are also investing in a further 22 EVs from Pelican Yutong, which means that by the end of 2021 the group will have more electric buses than any other Scottish operator.
“We already operate the cleanest diesel buses on our network and we’re in the process of upgrading our older engines to this standard too. However, these twelve Scottish-built EVs are a significant step towards phasing out diesel buses altogether and building our zero emission fleet. We’re investing in the future – to create a better experience for our passengers and a better environment in our community,” added Xplore Dundee Managing Director Christine McGlasson.
