First Bus has been awarded more than £4 million as part of Transport Scotland’s new funding programme, the Scottish Ultra Low Emission Bus scheme, helping to pay for 22 new fully electric buses for the Glasgow fleet.

The new buses will be made by Alexander Dennis Ltd in Falkirk, helping to secure jobs in the local area, reports The National. First Glasgow are also investing over £5m into the project.

Scottish Power Energy Networks will also be providing over £300k in contribution to the project from their Green Economy Fund which will go toward the electrical infrastructure needed to charge the vehicles at First Glasgow’s Caledonia Depot.

Both the 22 new fully electric vehicles as well as the relevant infrastructure will be in place ready to go on the Glasgow network by autumn 2021 in time for the city hosting COP26, the UN Climate Change Conference.

Over £3m of funding through Transport Scotland’s latest round of BEAR funding will also help transform some of the oldest buses in the fleet into low emission vehicles.

Andrew Jarvis, Managing Director for First Glasgow, said: “This is another step on our journey to operating a fully zero emission fleet by 2035 and we are already leading the way with the first commercially operated electric buses in Glasgow as well as the soon-to-launch world’s first double decker hydrogen buses in Aberdeen.”