Many of the ‘green’  buses in London are dependent upon diesel due to faulty batteries.

London’s Mayor Boris Johnson has long championed green public transport but his hybrid Routemaster buses are now being criticised for faulty batteries and an overdependence on diesel.

The small conventional engines, which are only supposed to run while the batteries are charging, are being being used 90% of the time, according to some reports.

Leon Daniels, TfL’s Managing Director of Surface Transport, said: “The New Routemaster is the cleanest and greenest bus of its class and we have seen absolutely no safety problems with its hybrid system.

“Metroline has confirmed that they are not aware of any issues arising from changes between electric and hybrid modes in service and they have had no such problems reported to them by their drivers.

“However, concerns have been raised previously about the performance of the batteries on the earlier vehicles.

“An improved battery design was introduced on new deliveries and any older ones which fail are repaired or replaced.

“This has all been done by the manufacturers within the warranty period, at no cost to TfL, or the fare or tax payer.”