The world’s first hydrogen–powered double-decker bus will be trialled in London next year as part of a scheme to phase out ‘dirty’ diesel buses.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced on Wednesday that no more ‘dirty’ pure diesel buses would be added to Transport for London’s (TfL) fleet from 2018.
Every new single-decker bus made for central London will also be zero-emission.
Mr Khan said: “I’m implementing hard-hitting measures to clean up London’s toxic air.
“I want London to become a world leader in hydrogen and electric bus technology.”
Eleven other major cities have agreed to phase out pure diesel buses by the end of 2020 – including New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Cape Town.
Paris, Madrid and Mexico City have committed to removing diesel buses from their cities by 2025.
Mr Khan said: “It’s great that more cities are getting on board to phase out the procurement of pure diesel buses which sends a clear signal that only the cleanest technologies are wanted in our cities.”
He added: “Transforming London’s bus fleet by accelerating the introduction of zero-emission buses is important and I plan to work with bus manufacturers, other cities, the European Commission and the C40 climate change leadership group of cities to move this agenda forward.”
The equivalent of 9,400 premature deaths occur each year in London due to illnesses caused by long-term exposure to air pollution, the Mayor’s office estimated.