Diamond Bus launches brand new electric buses
17 June 2025
Diamond are pleased to announce that we have launched the first three of six brand new electric buses on our Service 9 between Queens Hospital, Burton and East Midlands Airport & Gateway.
A further two new EVs will join the depot in the near future, to operate on Service 8 between Swadlincote and Queens Hospital, 2 Burton to Edge Hill and the X12 between Burton and Lichfield.
The new buses, which cost £425,000 each have been funded in Partnership with Staffordshire County Council and the Department for Transport, are anticipated to contribute to a carbon saving of 8,692 tonnes CO2e a year in Staffordshire alone. The funding is part of the Government’s Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) 2 scheme - a £129m Government fund to introduce Zero Emission buses across the UK.
In addition to the Government funding, Rotala Ltd, the parent company of Diamond Bus East Midlands are additionally funding over a million pounds investment on depot upgrades to support the operation and maintenance of these new EV buses. Bringing a huge investment of over £3.5 million to develop a cleaner and greener services across Staffordshire and the East Midlands area.
Simon Dunn, CEO of Rotala Ltd says: “Diamond Bus are very proud to be working with Staffordshire County Council to deliver some great benefits to Burton bus passengers.
The award of this funding has enabled us to invest in eight brand new electric buses for the region. One of our key business goals is to be able to bring zero emission buses to our customers. This commitment means that we have also invested in new infrastructure at our Burton depot to support the operation of Electric buses moving forward. Its great news for the region to bring cleaner, more sustainable bus services to the Staffordshire community.”
Darryl Eyers, Staffordshire County Council’s Director for Economy, Infrastructure and Skills, said: “I am delighted our partnership with Diamond Bus has resulted in this investment in improved transport infrastructure in Staffordshire.”