It has been announced this week that London’s fleet of hydrogen buses have safely undertaken 1,000 fuelling at the Air Products fuelling station at Lea Interchange, Stratford.
One fuel tank of hydrogen allows a hydrogen bus to run for at least 18 hours. The 1,000 fuellings have enabled the buses to travel approximately 100,000 miles around the capital, only emitting water from their exhaust pipes.
Diana Raine, European business manager, hydrogen energy systems at Air Products explained, “The Transport for London (TfL) hydrogen bus fleet is a ground breaking first for Europe and has been a great success to date. The fleet has shown Londoners that hydrogen transport offers a low carbon solution that not only offers zero emissions, but also delivers a real and practical alternative to the diesel powered bus.”
The hydrogen buses, operated by FirstGroup, are now an established fixture of the Transport for London bus network and they run on the scenic RV1 route, which takes them past major London landmarks including Tower Bridge, the London Eye and Covent Garden.
Mike Weston, operations director for London Buses, said, “London faces many environmental challenges but we believe alternative fuels, such as hydrogen, will bring genuine long term benefits in tackling CO2 emissions. Hydrogen fuel cell buses are an exciting new technology which will help us further build on the excellent work we are doing to improve air quality for Londoners.”
Before long the buses will be joined by other hydrogen vehicles on London’s roads. A fleet of hydrogen black cabs and a fleet of hydrogen powered scooters will be coming to the capital in time for the Olympics. These new fleets are part of the EU funded HyTEC project, which aims to demonstrate hydrogen vehicles and refueling facilities. As part of this initiative an additional Air Products hydrogen fuelling station will be deployed, creating a network of stations that will create greater flexibility for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in the capital, cutting carbon emissions and air pollution.
