The city council of Nottingham launched in 2012 a six-year project to convert its entire tendered bus fleet ('Linkbus') to electric buses. The €17 million project, implemented in partnership with the city's urban transport company (Nottingham Community Transport), is mainly funded through the city's workplace parking levy and a UK Green Bus funding scheme. Furthermore, some funding has come from the EU Horizon 2020 REMOURBAN project, a Smart Cities and Communities (SCC) project where Nottingham is involved in as frontrunner city ('Lighthouse city').
Nottingham's electric bus project has three objectives: reduce air pollution, decrease noise levels and cut operating costs. Between 2012 - 2017, it has already delivered carbon emission cuts worth 1050 tons, and decreased fuel costs by €340,000. Upon completion of the project in 2018, Nottingham will be able to save over €225,000 per year in the operation of its bus fleet. These generated savings are critical for the city, especially in light of strained public budgets.
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