Amey will trial hydrogen-powered vehicles on Sheffield roads. Credit: courtesy of AMEY.

UK-based infrastructure support service provider Amey is set to trial two hydrogen-powered vans as part of its plans to help improve its environmental performance on Sheffield roads.

The trial is aimed at extending the range of power supplied by the battery to around 200 miles.

Under its Streets Ahead highways maintenance contract, which will involve the upgrade of the city roads, pavements, street lighting and bridges for 25 years, the company already has two electric vans at its depot at Olive Grove.

Amey further plans to run another 15 electric vehicles in order to replace the existing diesel vehicles in an effort to reduce carbon emissions.

The company and the Department for Transport will monitor the test results to evaluate the use of hydrogen-powered vehicles in general.

Streets Ahead environment manager Tom Cullingford said: “At the moment, there are only 20 to 30 hydrogen vehicles in the country and technology is at a very early stage.”

“At the moment, there are only 20 to 30 hydrogen vehicles in the country and technology is at a very early stage.”

“But the obvious benefit is that there are zero carbon emissions which will help improve the air quality in and around Sheffield.”

The trial will involve vehicles such as Renault Kangoo ZE electric vans fitted with a hydrogen fuel cell by French company SymbioFcell and supplied to Amey through Symbio’s UK partner, Arcola Energy.

ITM Power will provide hydrogen for the vehicles from its hydrogen station based at Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) in Sheffield.

The Office for Low Emission Vehicles, part of the Department of Transport, has offered financial support for the experiment to assess the performance of two vehicles.

As part of the trial, issues such as the reduction in carbon emissions, the cost of running the vehicles and the mileage will be examined.