Our ambition is to be the partner of choice for innovative and sustainable transport, accelerating the transition to a zero carbon world.
Every day, FirstGroup plays its part in tackling climate change. Our buses and trains take passengers out of cars and off short‑haul flights, helping to reduce carbon emissions.
This is a crucial time for the transport sector, as the general public are increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of their travel choices. The bus and rail industry has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to change how people travel and encourage more people to take public transport.
Not only are we playing a pivotal role in reducing UK transport emissions and helping the Government meet its net‑zero commitments, we are helping to create a healthier planet and green jobs for a sustainable future. In line with our goal to become a net‑zero business by 2050, we continue to make significant progress in decarbonising our operations as we work towards a zero‑emission bus fleet by 2035 and continue to support the UK Government’s target to remove all diesel‑only trains from service by 2040.
Reduction in total carbon emissions since 2019
Of First Bus fleet powered by low or zero carbon energy
Of all our rail kilometres powered by zero carbon energy
Solar panels being installed at 20 of our First Bus depots
We were the only UK transport operator to be included in this year’s S&P Sustainability Yearbook, ranking in the top 10% of more than 7,600 companies included and with an overall score of 59 out of 100. We were one of only 28 transportation companies who made it into the 2025 Yearbook and is the only UK bus and rail operator to be included.
We were also named one of the world’s cleanest 200 publicly-listed companies for the sixth year in a row, achieving a place in the 2025 Clean200 report. We are one of only five UK companies to be included and is the only passenger transport operator based in Europe to be named in this year’s rankings.
Buses, coaches and trains contribute less than 5% of the UK’s transport emissions, compared to over 50% for cars, so as a leader in public transport, we recognise the responsibility we have to drive real change. The publication of our Climate Transition Plan is an important step in cementing our clear, science-based pathway to net-zero. It’s also important in ensuring we stay accountable and transparent in our progress.
In line with our commitment to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, we have a number of science-based Group emissions targets validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (‘SBTi’) including:
For more details, you can download our full report below.
First Bus is investing £70m in a further 160 zero-emission buses in the West of England, growing the First Bus zero-emission local fleet to over 250 vehicles. In partnership with the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority, an additional £20m has been secured through the latest round of the Department for Transport’s (DfT) Zero Emission Bus Regional Area (ZEBRA) funding scheme.
Following the electrification of Weston Island (Bath) and Lawrence Hill (Bristol) depots, four out of the company's five regional depots will be electrified by next year. The West of England area will now be running 258 zero-emission vehicles, transporting over 750,000 passengers per week. 27 of the 160 vehicles will be repowered diesel buses, a new solution to tackling climate change and improving local air quality. Each zero-emission bus will reduce carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) by 75 tonnes a year compared to the existing diesel fleet.
This investment in Bristol and Bath is part of a wider First Bus decarbonisation commitment to operate a 100% zero-emission fleet by 2035 and already has over 1000 zero emissions buses in operation.
Lumo committed to zero carbon travel right from its launch back in late 2021. All of Lumo's trains are 100% electric and 25 times cleaner than flying. And whether you’re using Lumo's fast and free-to-access Wi-Fi to browse LumoGo or work remotely, your time is 100% well-spent vs. driving and 40% more productive than the hassle of flying.
Travelling with Lumo from Edinburgh to London King’s Cross would save 95% CO2e compared to travelling by plane. In just one single Lumo journey you could save up to 7 trees** travelling the distance from London King's Cross to Aberdeen. If just 15% of passengers who flew from London Heathrow to Edinburgh travelled with Lumo instead, in just one year we could save 25,600 tonnes of CO2e - the equivalent of one million trees.**
**data shows equivalent annual Co2e saved travelling by train when compared with plane, sequestered by No of Trees.
