Reading Buses Defends £9,000 Number Plate Spend

Reading Buses has defended spending more than £9,000 on personalised registration plates for its new electric fleet.

The council-owned operator currently runs 32 electric buses, with a further 17 due to join the fleet - taking the total to 49. A Freedom of Information request shows £9,177 was spent on 23 custom plates in the 2025/26 financial year, at £399 each. Fares were increased in January, with discounts for app users.

Levi Dalton, who submitted the FOI, said: "What concerns me is the apparent purchase of matching personalised number plates for these vehicles - an expense that does not appear essential to service delivery."

Reading Buses said the plates are part of a marketing push to raise awareness of the environmental benefits of the zero-emission vehicles. A spokesperson said: "The registration numbers are part of our marketing programme for these zero emission vehicles, the 'ZEB' letters on them are to raise awareness of the environmental benefits and align with our ZEBRA theme - Zero Emission Buses for the Reading Area."

The firm added the outlay is small compared with the wider investment in the project: "The cost was a tiny fraction of the £14 million invested in deploying the new vehicles, and we get value from that investment for the entire life of the vehicle, compared to sponsored newspaper or online advertising campaigns that only last a few weeks."

Reading Buses also urged passengers to consider switching from private cars: "Everybody will be aware of the current situation in the Middle East, and with more than half of our fleet running on diesel alternatives, now is a great time to consider switching to the bus and taking advantage of our excellent value fares."

James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter