It has prioritised the first £25m for rural communities where building the infrastructure needed for the buses is more expensive.

The Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) 2 scheme is now open for bids from all local authorities in England outside London, with applications to be prioritised from those that did not receive funding in the previous funding rounds.

The first round of ZEBRA funding saw 1,300 zero emission buses introduced onto local bus routes as part of an initial target of 4,000. Eventually, the government wants the UK’s entire fleet to be fully decarbonised.

Transport secretary Mark Harper also announced the launch of a new research hub, backed by £10m in taxpayer funding, to develop ideas to ensure future transport infrastructure is low-carbon and resilient.

“Today’s funding for more zero-emission buses will help decarbonise public transport and grow the economy by keeping our communities connected,” he said.

“We have already reached...