Bidding details have been recently announced for the £20 million 3rd round of the Green Bus Fund. The details, available from the DfT website, along with guidance and proformas are to support the purchase of low carbon buses.
A previous round in 2010 saw Stagecoach North East awarded over £2 million for 26 new buses and East Yorkshire Motor Services awarded nearly £800,000 for 8 new buses. Dorset County Council and Nottingham City Council were two local authority winners who recieved funding for two vehicles each, in a round that neared a total of £15 million.
ATCO Chair Tracy Jessop said:
"In our current economic climate, any investment is welcome, especially where the funding not only ensures new, cleaner and more accessible buses but onward employment for bus manufacturers and their own suppliers. We would encourage our members and our colleagues within the bus industry to submit their bids within the deadline."
The Department for Transport have stated that the grant must be paid by 31 March 3012 and that all bids must be delivered by Friday 10 Febuary 2012.
Behaviour change can be an effective way of growing the market for bus services, delegates to ATCO’s Winter Conference were told last week.
The Association of Transport Coordinating Officers was formed in 1974 to bring together local authority officers whose work involved what were then new county council responsibilities for passenger transport.
