TfL retrofit programme ensures older buses will be ready for ULEZ

More than 1,000 London buses have undergone Transport for London’s retrofit programme in a step to ensure that the fleet is compliant ahead of the new Ultra-Low Emission Zone (ULEZ).

The scheme had 1,015 buses that run on 50 of the highest nitrogen dioxide-concentrated routes across the capital – including Elephant and Castle, Marylebone Road and Oxford Street –  fitted with selective catalytic reduction (SCR) devices to reduce the amount of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions produced.

The £10 million retrofit project, funded by TfL and the Department for Transport (DfT), should ensure that  London’s public transport fleet is compliant for the Ultra-Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) that will come into force in 2020.

This retrofit programme has now seen the majority of buses in the capital meet Euro-4 targets, with the remaining Euro-3 vehicles set to undergo a similar programme or be replaced with Euro-6 variations. By 2015, TfL says that all the buses in its fleet will meet or exceed Euro-4 regulations for the amount of particulate and NOx emissions produced.

TfL also is beginning a trial with Euro-6 versions of the new Routemaster on selected passenger routes, with a wider implementation scheduled for later this year.