Diesel buses running through Newcastle's air pollution hotspot are set to be swapped out for an all-electric service. Local councillors have welcomed a move to electrify Go North East's 307 and 309 services, which run between Newcastle and North Tyneside via the Coast Road.
Plans have been confirmed to bring in 18 new electric buses to serve the routes, replacing the diesel vehicles currently used, as part of a region-wide drive to modernise and clean up public transport. It comes as a boost to efforts to act on a notorious emissions hotspot that has long been the worst in Newcastle, close to the busy Corner House junction on the Coast Road.
Pollution levels exceed legal limits
A pollution sensor located at the junction of Stephenson Road and Jesmond Park West recorded an average nitrogen dioxide (NO2) level of 65.2 micrograms per cubic metre of air (μg/m3) in 2024, well above the legal maximum of 40 and the highest in Newcastle. There have been serious concerns about the pollution levels in the area, though Newcastle City Council has insisted that NO2 exposure in surrounding residential areas is significantly lower than at the roadside, which is among Tyneside's busiest roads.
The Department for Transport awarded £3.6 million earlier this year towards the electrification of the two bus routes, to which the city council will now add with £1.5 million of its Clean Air Zone funding.
Councillors welcome the switch
Manor Park ward Lib Dem councillor Greg Stone told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that local politicians had "long called for a switch to zero-emission buses on the Coast Road corridor" and were "delighted" with the news. He added: "We are very conscious that the Cradlewell to Chillingham Road sector is one of the city's air quality hotspots, and we are hopeful that this switch will reduce the diesel emissions which are a significant contributor to air quality problems."
Stephenson Road and Percy Street, in the city centre, were the only two locations in Newcastle to exceed the legal emissions level in 2025. The Stephenson Road pollution sensor picked up a slight increase in emissions from the previous year, though its average NO2 level is notably lower than the 97.7μg/m3 recorded in 2021.
Further measures planned
The council's most recent air quality annual report states that it would carry out a feasibility study into further measures to improve the situation at Stephenson Road, with the aim of "improving air quality such that the Clean Air Zone (CAZ) can be revoked".
A CAZ toll system was introduced around the city centre in 2023, under which some older vehicles that do not meet modern emissions standards are charged either £12.50 or £50 per day. Private cars remain exempt from the charges. There is thought to have been roughly a 10% fall in NO2 levels across the city from the CAZ's introduction to 2025. The number of streets in Newcastle where NO2 levels are known to be exceeding legal limits had dropped from 48 to just two since 2019.
Daniel Laird, commercial director at Go North East, said: "Nearly two million journeys are made each year on our 307 and 309 services, we're looking forward to electrifying these routes and bringing quieter streets, cleaner air and better journeys for communities we service in Newcastle North Tyneside and South Northumberland. Plans are ongoing to introduce 18 new electric vehicles and the necessary charging infrastructure to services 307 and 309. Once on the road, these new electric buses will save around 60 tonnes of harmful carbon emissions from polluting the environment each year."
North East mayor Kim McGuinness said that she wanted to see every bus service in the region to be electric within the next decade. The Labour mayor added: "The most recent £3.6 million we've secured for the North East means another 18 modern, cleaner and safer electric buses will enter service next year and that will help with air quality for people living near the Coast Road as well as being great for passengers going into Newcastle from North Tyneside."
