Environmental measures
- DB Arriva is committed to sustainability and has created a Zero Emission Institute (ZEI) to accelerate its transition to cleaner fleets across all its European markets. The ZEI acts as a center of excellence which all its business areas can draw on. The Institute will be a key support for client bodies and DB Arriva business units, sharing pan-European knowledge, experience and best practice in trialing alternative fuels and transitioning fleets to reduce emissions.
- DB Arriva is working in Italy, Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia and the Netherlands on environmental programs supported by the LIFE program (the EU’s financial instrument for the environment and climate action) with € 5.3 million. LIFE gives grants to projects that further the development of European policy in one of four areas: clean energy transition, nature and biodiversity, circular economy and quality of life, climate change mitigation and adaptation. The three projects are called LIFE H20BUS (water saving), RE-BREATH (air quality) and LIFE-CICLE (circularity).
- In 2022, DB Arriva took further steps to expand alternative drive technologies in the fleet, for example:
- DB Arriva has placed an order for 64 new electric buses in the Netherlands. The buses are scheduled to be put into operation towards the end of 2023 in the Uden, Den Bosch and Tilburg regions.
- In March 2022, DB Arriva helped secure a UK Governmental funding for 74 new zero emissions buses in West Yorkshire and Hertfordshire. DB Arriva UK Bus is to benefit from funding in both regions, helping to accelerate its sustainability ambitions and its drive towards a zero-emissions fleet.
- In Spring 2022, DB Arriva Italy introduced 16 new buses fueled by biomethane (CNG) in the regions of Friuli Venezia Giulia and Veneto, among the first of such vehicles in these regions to operate inter-urban and extra-urban services. In addition, new charging infrastructure was installed with the ambition to operate a fully electric urban fleet (32 vehicles) in Cremona by 2026. The first 11 electric vehicles will enter service towards the end of 2023.
- DB Arriva partnered with the Czech fuel distributor Čepro and Czech chemical company Spolchemie to launch a project to use hydrogen in rail transport. DB Arriva is seeking to purchase and operate a hydrogen train that could provide passenger transport primarily on non-electrified lines in the Ústí nad Labem Region, where it would partially replace diesel locomotives.
