celebrating Clean Air Day

Thursday 20 June is Clean Air Day - a day dedicated to highlighting the importance of the air quality around us, and learning what we can do to help improve it.

One way that we can all help make a big impact on local air quality is to leave the car at home on the drive and take the bus instead!

A full-double deck bus can seat over 80 passengers, meaning that it has the potential to take a large number of cars off the road (over 2km worth!); helping reduce congestion and improving the air quality. And with £2 single fares, plus tap on, tap off guaranteeing that you won't be charged more than a day ticket, now is the time to try the bus.

low emission fleet

Around 40% of buses in Reading run on sustainably sourced compressed natural gas, and in the past year we have expanded our CNG bus fleet by 10%.

All of our CNG buses run on bio-methane, produced sustainably from food and animal waste that reduces CO2 emissions by up to 84%*, meaning that the overall carbon emissions for the full life of the bus are very similar to those of grid-powered electric buses.

Alongside these buses is our fleet of Euro 6 rated diesel buses which take advantage of the latest engine technology to reduce the emissions they put out into the air.

a zero emission future

Thanks to funding secured through the UK government's ZEBRA 2 scheme we've been able to invest in 24 brand-new zero-emission electric double-deck buses, which will be joining the fleet from June 2025.

These new buses will allow us to then cascade our CNG buses to other routes allowing us to phase out the older diesel buses.

With a smoother and quieter ride for passengers and modern features such as full air conditioning for the summer and heating for the winter; these new zero-emission buses will help make your journey not only more sustainable but also more comfortable.

Full details about our exciting new electric fleet can be found here.

great value fares

We offer a range of great value fares that can help you save money when you travel with us including the £3.40 Reading All-Bus ticket which allows unlimited travel around Reading all day or our £2 single fares across our whole network.

To help you get the best fare when you travel we've also introduced tap on tap off - which automatically works out the best fare for you for the day, so you'll never pay more than a day ticket!

So why not give the bus a go this clean air day!

*Based on Well-to-Wheel GHG saving compared to Euro VI diesel equivalent, independently assessed and certified by the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership (Source: zemo.org.uk)