Environment impact

Public transport is a vital part of the solution to tackle climate change, poor air quality and congestion in cities. 

Buses, coaches and trains represent less than 4% of the UK's domestic carbon emissions (source: BEIS, 2022). Modal shift from private cars to collective and shared modes of transport brings a wide range of benefits to the environment and local communities.

Beyond the environmental benefits inherent to our core business, reducing our environmental impact is a top priority for Go-Ahead and is embedded into our business culture.

A UK leader

Go-Ahead is leading the transition to a low-carbon economy in the UK public transport sector. We were the first public transport company in the UK to establish Science Based Targets for our carbon emissions validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). Our aim is to run a zero-emission bus fleet by 2035 – five years ahead of the UK government's targets. To know more about our carbon targets, please read our climate change strategy.

In the last decade, we have managed to consistently reduce the carbon emissions from our operations. In 2024, we were rated as a B by CDP (formerly, the Carbon Disclosure Project), ahead of the sector average.

We are also the 'most admired' transport company in the UK (including airlines and airline groups) for community and environmental responsibility. That's according to Britain's longest-running survey of corporate reputation.

To know more about our carbon emissions, please read our latest sustainability report.

Responsible operations

We work continuously to improve our performance and reduce our environmental impact. We have targets for carbon emissions, as well as water, waste and air quality. We hold ISO 50001 (Energy Management System) certificate for all our UK operations, and implement environmental best practices across our operations.

We are the largest operator of electric buses in the UK. Go-Ahead London is a pioneer in electric buses with an award-winning full-electric garage in Waterloo and the largest electric bus depot in the UK, in Northumberland Park.

We continue to trial new sustainable transport solutions. Go-Ahead London deployed a Bus2Grid proof of concept trial, which creates a ‘virtual power station’ by taking surplus energy from electric buses to the national grid. In Brighton & Hove, we launched 'geo-fenced' hybrid electric buses that switch to zero emission in the city centre. We also created the world's first 'air filtering bus' in 2019 in Southampton, which cleans the air as it drives through the city.

Air filtering busOur bus investmentsBus2Grid