First's hydrogen bus fleet in Aberdeen hits 100,000 milestone

First Aberdeen and Aberdeen City Council are celebrating after their hydrogen double-decker bus fleet achieved its first major milestone -  completing 100,000 miles of operation since launching into customer service in January.

The fleet of 15 First Aberdeen buses, manufactured in the UK by Wrightbus, has already saved 170,000kg of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere – the equivalent of taking 42 cars off the road for a year.

Michelle Thomson, hydrogen bus driver at First Aberdeen, said: "Drivers and the public absolutely love the new hydrogen buses - sailing smoothly and silently through the city's streets is an absolute joy. We get people hopping on just for a ride, to enjoy the experience.

“It’s been especially lovely during lockdown, too, as the buses are so quiet that socially distancing passengers wearing masks can still have a natter from either end of the bus. As drivers, it makes us much more in tune with what’s going on on board, so we’re able to deliver the best in customer service.

“In fact, they’re so quiet that we’re getting more customers nodding off on board – I imagine this will start to happen more as hospitality opens up and people take the opportunity to make their way back from the pub!

“It’s lovely driving through countryside routes as well, knowing that we’re not disturbing the peace – we can glide through, hardly noticed. But most of all it’s great knowing that we’re doing our bit to help protect the planet - that’s really important to us all."

Aberdeen makes its own hydrogen to power the buses, making it an even greener energy source for the local community.

Aberdeen City Council Co-Leader, Councillor Douglas Lumsden, said: “Transforming the city's carbon footprint on a large scale is no easy feat, but we're committed to making continuous progress and are proud to be leading the way in the transport industry with First Aberdeen to bring our joint vision of low emission public transport to life.”

The existing 15 hydrogen buses are now in service across the city with the majority of them predominantly operating on the Service 19 route in Aberdeen.

Ian Gillott, Wrightbus Group Director, said: “To reach 100,000 miles is a significant milestone. It is a credit to Aberdeen City Council and to First Bus that they have embraced this new technology so readily, putting Aberdeen firmly and historically on the zero emissions map.”