New green equipment will be trialled on London buses

Date: 18/4/2011

A trial is to begin in London that will see 18 of the city's buses retrofitted with new apparatus designed to help reduce carbon emissions.

The first of its kind to take place in the UK, the test will see 18 of the vehicles kitted out with the latest equipment that claims to reduce nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide (NOx) to determine which provides the best results.

Once the findings have been noted, the technology may be rolled out across the rest of the capital's fleet, according to Transport for London.

Currently, all of the buses in the city meet the Euro IV standard for particulate matter pollution - the emissions guidelines drawn up by the European Commission - which has helped the capital to reduce its output of these substances from 200 to 14 tonnes between 1997 and 2010.

Following on from this, it is hoped that by 2015 the vehicles will also be compliant with the Euro IV standard for NOx.

Mike Weston, London Buses Operations Director, said: "London continues to look for ways to improve the emissions and environmental performance of the bus fleet. This often means trialling new technology."

Earlier in the month, the Department for Transport revealed that 542 green buses are to join fleets around the country as a result of government funding.

Posted by Nick Anderson