More than 100 buses will be run on diesel made from used chip oil and animal fat as part of a new pilot scheme.

All buses from the Barking depot will now run on a blend of 80 per cent regular diesel and 20 per cent biodiesel, an environmentally friendly fuel which will help cut carbon emissions of each bus by about 15 per cent.

Biodiesel is a renewable, clean-burning fuel made from used cooking oil from the catering industry and tallow which is a residue from the meat processing trade.

Routes that will run on the new fuel include the 15 to Trafalgar Square. A 50,000 litre storage tank has also been installed, enabling the biofuel to be mixed on-site, reducing costs and lowering carbon emissions.

Matthew Pencharz, Boris Johnson’s senior advisor for Environment and Energy, said: “This is another example of the mayor’s commitment to cutting carbon emissions and making our city’s transport even cleaner and greener. The mayor has called for investment in a large scale biodiesel refinery in the capital and with London operating one of the biggest bus fleets in the world, this pilot is an important step in demonstrating to the UK’s biodiesel industry that there is a huge potential demand for it here.”

Mark Threapleton, managing director for Stagecoach London, added: “Stagecoach was the first bus company to use 100 per cent biofuel back in 2007 and we’re delighted to be at the cutting edge in the use of this cleaner, greener biofuel in London.”