The way we travel every day is evolving at a rapid rate.

The UK Government confirmed this year that the ban on new petrol and diesel car sales has been fast tracked to 2030 – providing a gap in the market for new innovations in road travel.

The United Kingdom Petroleum Industry Association’s (UKPIA) recently published ‘The Future of Mobility in the UK’ report identifies important issues, challenges and possible solutions to how the UK can help its biggest carbon emitting sector – transport - meet net-zero targets by 2050.

The report states that electric vehicles are only able to be manufactured thanks to many parts that are made from materials sourced from petroleum products, meaning there is a catch-22 situation in the development of these vehicles - they need oil in order to be created in the first place!

However, the UK Government recently announced £20m in funding for electric vehicle innovation – but is this enough to make sufficient progress to meet net zero targets?

Is hydrogen-fuelled bus travel the next step?

The Future of Mobility report explains that urban and sub-urban bus routes are likely to be well-placed to transition to electric or hydrogen fuel, depending on the right infrastructure.

The roll out is already in progress. Last month in London, 20 brand new hydrogen buses came into service on one route, costing £10.9 million – meaning that a single bus is more expensive than a Ferrari! These 20 buses were part of a batch of 100 buses that will be distributed across the UK. In 2015, the UK’s first hydrogen production and bus refuelling station was opened in Aberdeen, as part of a £19 million green transport demonstration project. The world's first fleet of double decker hydrogen buses was officially launched into service in the city earlier this year.

To learn about how Hydrogen works, watch our video explaining more here.