[Falkirk, 17.03.2026] Falkirk MP and Co-Chair of the British Buses All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) Euan Stainbank has welcomed the UK Government’s publication of its 10-year zero emission bus (ZEB) order pipeline, welcomed the scale of ambition while calling for stronger support for UK manufacturing.
The pipeline, published on 16 March 2026, forecasts over 23,000 zero emission bus orders between 2026 and 2035, with peak demand expected around 2030.
Key figures from the pipeline include:
- Over 23,000 zero emission buses expected over 10 years
- 12,673 double-deck buses, forming the largest share
- 6,726 single-deck buses, supporting local and rural routes
- Peak annual demand of around 3,000 buses by 2030.
Mr Stainbank warned that without the right policy framework, the domestic economic benefits of this investment could be lost overseas.
Mr Stainbank said:
“This 10-year pipeline shows the scale of the opportunity in front of us. With more than 23,000 zero emission buses expected, this is a major chance to grow jobs and industry here in the UK.
“But without the right decisions to reverse the trend which has led to foreign manufacturers gain half of the market share in Zero Emission Bus now, these risks becoming a shopping list for overseas manufacturers rather than what they should be which is a driver of British jobs.
“The next five years are critical. Once these orders are placed elsewhere, they are gone.
“Government must use the tools it has to back UK manufacturing, including stronger social value weighting when public money is concerned and implementing the strong representations of the sector to the recent procurement consultation.
“If we get this right, we can build and scale up world-leading zero emission bus sector. If we get it wrong, we risk losing that opportunity.”
Mr Stainbank also highlighted that there are still over 36,000 fossil-fuel buses on UK roads, underlining the necessary scale of the transition ahead.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
- The Department for Transport published the 10-year zero emission bus order pipeline on 16 March 2026 (see link here).
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