A PROJECT to bring electric buses that can be charged wirelessly through the road to Oxford's park and rides has been threatened by a lack of funding.

Oxford Bus Company wants to deploy 20 of the double-decker vehicles at the Pear Tree, Water Eaton, Thornhill, Redbridge and Seacourt sites, in a bid to further cut pollution in the city centre.

It proposed the trial jointly with Oxfordshire County Council and Oxford City Council but bosses admitted this week that securing cash to pay for it was proving "very challenging."

The firm had hoped to bring in the buses by the end of this year but said the scheme would now depend on whether it could win funding from the government.

Oxford Bus Company managing director Phil Southall said: "This has been a very challenging project and more costly than was originally envisaged in terms of the costs of the supporting infrastructure required and who funds it in this challenging climate.

"We are working very closely with city council and the county council on bringing electric buses to Oxford but this is by no means straightforward."

A spokesman said the funding bid – for "a substantial seven-figure sum" – had been submitted to the Office of Low Emission Vehicles and it is understood the outcome could be confirmed in the coming weeks.

Mr Southall added: "External funding will be required to make this [scheme] a reality.

"We are still waiting to hear the outcome of that bid, which will determine if the project proceeds or not at this stage."

The county council did not respond to requests for comment.

The proposals for electric buses in Oxford were inspired by similar vehicles in Milton Keynes, which create no tailpipe emissions such as pollutants carbon dioxide or nitrogen dioxide.

It is believed they would be the first double-deckers of their kind in the UK, developed by MASP, a partnership company between Mitsui & Co Ltd, and Ove Arup & Partners Ltd.

The buses would be charged wirelessly by transmitting power from a coil buried in the road at the park-and-ride stops to a similar coil on the underside of the vehicles.

Each one would need just 10 minutes parked over a coil at the start of each run to have enough energy needed to operate for the day, the companies behind the scheme said last year.

The idea has been put forward as a way of improving air quality in the city.

In January 2014 the city council imposed a low emission zone, forcing bus operators to phase out older buses and bring in cleaner ones with hybrid engines, with a transport plan for the city also proposing to eventually move to a "zero emission zone" over the next 15 years.

A county council spokesman said: "Backing the application is part of the commitment to support the uptake of low and zero emission vehicles, introducing appropriate innovative technologies and infrastructure and delivering a city centre low emissions zone.

"If implemented this project will demonstrate a new technology, improve air quality in Oxfordshire and help cement our growing reputation as a county at the forefront of innovation in public transport systems.

"We are in discussion with Oxford Bus regarding the location of potential charging points at our Park and Ride sites."