Toodle-loo: all aboard the UK's first 'poo bus'

An environmentally friendly bus powered by human waste, the first of its kind in the UK, entered service in Bristol today.

The 'Bio Bus' runs on biomethane gas generated from human waste and leftover food, emitting 30 per cent less carbon dioxide than a diesel powered vehicle.

The bus is operated by the Bath Bus Company and will transport people between Bristol airport and the centre of Bath. Developers hope it will improve air quality and showcase the power of biofuel.

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The gas is produced at the nearby Wessex Water sewerage plant that is run by the energy firm GENeco.

"Gas powered vehicles have an important role to play in improving air quality in UK cities," GENeco general manager Mohammed Saddiq told the BBC. "The Bio Bus goes further than that and is actually powered by people living in the local area, including quite possibly those on the bus itself."

The annual food and sewage waste produced by one person would fuel the bus for up to 37 miles. Impurities from the gas have been removed so its combustion produces "virtually odour free emissions", bosses say.

"The bus clearly shows that human poo and our waste food are valuable resources," said Charlotte Morton, chief executive of the Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association.

She said practices concerning food waste needed to change urgently. "Food which is unsuitable for human consumption should be separately collected and recycled through anaerobic digestion into green gas and biofertilisers, not wasted in landfill sites or incinerators," Morton said.