A FLEET of hybrid buses will hit the streets in a nationwide zero-emissions first.

Brighton and Hove now has the first buses in the UK that can be set to run in zero-emissions mode when they travel through the city centre.

The 30 bright blue double deckers will begin serving their routes in October.

They will improve air quality across the city and cut down on emissions contributing to climate change.

The fully electric buses use a technology called geofencing, which triggers their engines to run in zero-emissions mode every time they enter the city’s Ultra Low Emissions Zone (Ulez).

The new models are called “Enviro400ERs”, and run on batteries topped up by the brakes, as well as a generator when the bus is outside the Ulez zone.

They will travel on Route 5, one of the city’s busiest. The route carries 7.6 million passengers a year across Hangleton, Hollingbury, Hove, Patcham and Preston Park.

This equates to 133,104 emissions-free miles driven in the Ulez each year.

The Ulez was introduced in 2015 and covers Castle Square, North Street and Western Road as far as Palmeira Square.

The council gave bus companies five years to comply with its low emission standards.

Brighton and Hove Buses has invested £9.9 million in its new vehicles.

The company’s managing director Martin Harris said: “These new buses are an important part of our commitment to making Brighton and Hove a clean air city with zero emissions by 2030.”

“Our aim is to help improve air quality for everybody by continually cutting emissions and reducing our energy and fuel use.”

The company said: “Not only does this latest technology improve air quality in the city centre but the buses also use fuel very efficiently.

“They’re the most practical way of achieving no emissions through the centre of Brighton because they don’t need to recharge in the middle of the day. This keeps buses in service and eliminates the need for the city to invest in expensive and intrusive roadside charging stations.”

The scheme has been run in conjunction with bus provider Go-Ahead, which operates the UK’s largest all-electric bus garage. Chief executive David Brown said: “A double decker bus can take as many as 75 cars off the roads in our cities and towns.

“When it comes to improving the air quality and congestion in our cities buses are a vital part of the solution, especially with vehicles that can be set to run in zero-emissions mode in sensitive areas like these.”

London, which boasts the largest electric bus fleet in Europe, has won praise for pioneering green public transport. With this UK-wide first, Brighton is now hot on its heels.