IT WAS launched with high hopes as the start of a transport revolution.

It won acclaim from all over the world - including an environmental award from Tony Blair.

But despite the early promise, Oxford's pioneering electric bus has finally reached the end of the road.

After just four years the unique service is being axed because the county council cannot afford the running costs of £100,000.

For many of Oxford's population the fleet of four 18-seater buses will probably not be a great loss - they did not look much different to any other bus and it would have been easy to miss them altogether.

But it was not without its fans - on an average day it would ferry around 400 people between the railway station and the university's science area.

Katherine Fletcher, 27, of Abbey Road, Oxford, who was a regular passenger, said: "If more people knew about it, they wouldn't have to cut the service.

"We need more buses like that. It was cheap, environmentally friendly and didn't add to the pollution of an already over-polluted area."

Green county councillor Sushila Dhall added: "I'm sorry to see the subsidy for it end. It could have been put on a route where it paid for itself - along the arterial routes for the park and ride would be the place for it." The benefits of the electric bus, which was provided by Southern Electric and operated first by Oxford Bus Company and later by Stagecoach, are undisputed. It emitted none of the potentially dangerous pollutants in diesel and petrol such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and particles linked to respiratory diseases.

Had it taken off, the streets of Oxford would also have been much quieter as it made far less noise than conventional buses.

But realistically the electric bus, in its present form, was never going to be a mainstay of the city's transport network.

Richard Helling, the county's public transport officer, said: "We were aware of the limitations of battery technology. But we felt, and still feel, the technology was not going to develop unless there was a demand for it.

"At the moment technology is such that electric buses can only be used on short distances. They could only go 50 miles a day before they ran out of electricity, whereas a normal bus service does three times that."

There were also technical difficulties, when it was found that the chargers used did not suit the type of batteries being used on the buses.

But Mr Helling reassured the public that the demise of the electric bus would not mean the end of green transport in the city saying: "Since the electric buses were introduced in Oxford bus companies have introduced diesel buses with lower emission levels."

It would also be wrong to believe that the demise of Oxford's buses mark the end of electrical transport.

Ironically as Oxford takes its buses off the road, the city of Glasgow is introducing its own version of the electric bus on to its streets. How the electric bus works

The buses are driven by an electric motor which is powered by six battery packs

The batteries are charged overnight and also during the day when the bus is parked at its terminus point

The batteries receive additional power when the bus is braking

Driving characteristics are very similar to a car powered by an automatic gear box

There are only two pedals - one for braking and one for accelerating

The capacity of the bus is 18 people

Its maximum speed is 40mph

The maximum acceleration is one metre per second

The bus has a range of 55 miles a day on city centre operation New bus set to add extra buzz A NEW breed of electric bus could soon be charged up and ready to go on Oxford streets.

The bus company Stagecoach is experimenting with a new hybrid bus - part-driven by electricity and part by petrol or diesel.

The new model, which is being manufactured in Italy, has an advantage over the first electric bus used in the city as it can carry its own generator on board and does not need to stop at a terminus to charge up its batteries.

Andy Clarke, planning manager for Stagecoach in Oxford, said: "We can operate on electricity for about 50 per cent of the time.

"What we would have to do at some point is switch back to motor to charge it up.

"This gives it the possibility of running all day long, provided you are in a position to switch the engine to petrol or diesel for some sections of the route.

"It makes it very efficient. The idea would be to use electricity in the city centre where the problem of pollution is more acute.

"We are hoping it could take off. We will run them for a year or so and see how things can progress."

The new bus is being part-funded with European cash specifically for developments in the field of non-nuclear energy.

Mr Clarke said it was likely that the two new hybrid buses could replace some of the route served by the old county-council subsidised service. The new hybrid buses are likely to be in use in about two months' time.

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