The U.K. government has launched a £2 million ($2.89 million) fund to "encourage more businesses to switch to hydrogen-fuelled vehicles."
In a news release on Tuesday, the Department for Transport and Office for Low Emission Vehicles said the Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV) Fleet Support Scheme would enable private businesses, as well as organizations such as police forces and health trusts, to bid for funding in order to complement their fleets with zero emission vehicles.
The fund could put as many as 100 new hydrogen fueled cell cars on Britain's roads by spring 2017, with successful bidders seeing up to 75 percent of their costs covered.
"Hydrogen fuel cells are an important part of our vision for almost all cars and vans to be zero-emission by 2050," transport minister Andrew Jones said in a statement.
"This funding, along with the growing network of hydrogen refueling stations opening in England, will help businesses and the public sector to get on board with this exciting technology," Jones added.
"This is further proof that we are leading the way in making journeys cleaner and protecting the environment," he said.
Fuel cell vehicles have no carbon dioxide emissions, with their only by-product water vapor. As technology develops, a range of options are being looked at for the next generation of clean vehicles.
In January 2014, for example, Ford unveiled plans for a new solar-powered hybrid car, while electric vehicles such as Tesla's Model S can go from 0 to 60 miles per hour in less than three seconds. Hybrid cars that have both an electric motor and a petrol engine are also gaining in popularity.
The appetite for hydrogen based fuel systems seems to be growing. According to the U.S. Department of Energy's Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program, fuel cells "have the potential to replace the internal combustion engine in vehicles."
Earlier this year, European airline easyJet unveiled plans for a zero emissions hydrogen fuel system which it says could save about 50,000 tons of fuel per year. The concept is based around the idea of stowing a hydrogen fuel cell in the hold of the aircraft.
