A new network of cables and equipment at a substation near Abellio London’s Twickenham Bus Depot will enable the electrification of up to 150 buses.
UK Power Networks has installed 2.5km of new underground cable and upgraded the local substation through an investment of about £1.8 million to deliver 3.86MVA of additional power capacity. It will connect 30 charge points that will charge buses overnight.
It has used its Green Recovery programme to fully convert the depot to electric buses in future, cutting carbon emissions and improving air quality.
UK Power Networks is delivering an £66 million investment across 85 ‘shovel ready’ sites in a bid to fast-track low carbon energy projects that will help achieve the Government’s Ten Point Plan towards Net Zero by 2050, with Twickenham among the sites to benefit.
A total of 30 new electric double-decker buses are now operating from the depot on route 111 between Heathrow Central and Kingston’s Cromwell Road Bus Station.
The project supports the transition to net zero carbon emissions and plans for the capital’s entire bus fleet to be fully-electric by 2034.
Jon Eardley, Managing Director, Abellio London Bus, said: “This project will give us the capacity to fully convert our buses at Twickenham to electric, cleaning the air and helping to deliver the Mayor’s zero emission ambition.
“Here at Abellio London we are committed to ambitious and sustained investment in green infrastructure and a zero emission fleet.
“We see this as essential for attracting more people onto public transport, which in turn promotes other forms of active travel.”
