In a ceremony in Rome, officials unveiled the plan to introduce more than 3,000 electric and hydrogen‑powered buses across 55 Italian municipalities.
The rollout is funded by roughly €2 billion allocated from the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (Pnrr). The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport said the investment will replace aging diesel fleets and modernise local public transport networks.
According to the ministry, the new vehicles will be distributed among cities of varying size, from major urban centres to smaller towns. The electric buses will draw power from existing grid infrastructure, while the hydrogen models will use on‑site refuelling stations that the plan also finances.
Local authorities are expected to submit procurement bids by the end of the year. The ministry indicated that the procurement process will follow EU public‑procurement rules to ensure transparency and competition.
Transport unions have welcomed the shift toward cleaner technology but have called for guarantees on job security for drivers and maintenance staff during the transition.
Environmental groups praised the initiative as a step toward meeting Italy’s 2030 emissions targets. They noted that the combined use of electric and hydrogen buses could cut urban CO₂ emissions by several hundred thousand tonnes annually.