Warrington's Own Buses installs air cleaning technology to protect drivers from Covid-19

Warrington’s Own Buses is installing AirLabs’ AirBubbl air cleaning devices in all 86 of its operational fleet to decrease risk of driver exposure to Covid-19.

AirLabs says its AirBubbl filters more than 95% of airborne viruses and contaminated particulate matter and floods the vehicle with more than 30,000 litres of clean air every hour.

Stephen Stringer, head of engineering at Warrington’s Own Buses, said: “The priority for us is to protect the health and safety of our employees, who provide an essential service, and of course for our customers, the people of Warrington. 

“By installing the AirBubbl devices we’re ensuring that we can reduce the risk of exposure for our staff, who have done a fantastic job in serving Warrington during this crisis.”

AirLabs, the London-based scale up behind the AirBubbl device, is now focusing on its new air cleaning solution for the passenger cabins of public transportation, including buses, coaches and trains.

AirLabs last week received £80,000 from Barclays and Unreasonable Impact to bring its Covid-19-response AiroSafe technology to market.

The AiroSafe is designed to remove airborne coronavirus from the passenger cabins of public transport, by creating a personal air space for every seat.

AirLabs aims to install the first passenger protection units with partners by October this year.

Marc Ottolini, Airlabs chief executive, said: “As lockdowns continue to ease around the world, the focus now shifts to how we can get back to business safely.

“There is increasing acceptance of the role of aerosol transmission of this virus and that the dose matters, as higher exposures can lead to more severe illness.

“We have had significant global interest in our air cleaning technology since the virus struck and believe that it can play a major role in reducing the risk of exposure on public transport for drivers and passengers.”

AirLabs is already installing AirBubbl devices in 100 patient transport vehicles operated by The HATS Group, to reduce the risk of exposure for its medical workers supporting London hospitals.