First York’s electric buses have collectively travelled one million kilometres, saving 880 tons of CO2 emissions, compared to a diesel bus.
An electrifying milestone has been
celebrated this week in York, as the ground-breaking 12 First Bus
electric vehicles which operate on two of the city’s Park & Ride
sites have collectively driven one million kilometres since launching in
June 2014. The one million landmark has also seen huge savings in CO2 emissions, when compared to operating a diesel bus – an estimated 880 tons.
The major milestone was reached this
month (September), making First York the fastest bus company to reach
the one million kilometre mark, in comparison to other areas that also
operate a similar number of electric vehicles. The fleet of 12 vehicles
racked up the impressive total in just 21 months, some nine months ahead
of schedule, which is a significant achievement for the business and
city, as City of York Council continues its plans to make York a
pollution free city.
Speaking about the First Bus
electric vehicle fleet, which are also fitted with free Wi-Fi, Marc
Bichtemann, Managing Director at First York, said: “We are constantly
striving to introduce cleaner vehicles, improve fuel efficiency and
reduce emissions, so this milestone is a fantastic achievement.
“We operate 12 electric buses
between the Poppleton Park & Ride, Monks Cross Park & Ride, and
York city centre, all of which deliver zero tail pipe emissions and
support our local authority partners’ goal to reduce air pollution in
the city.
“The electric vehicles are not only
performing to a really high standard, but they are popular with our
customers too, and we look forward to continuing to welcome even more
customers onto our services.”
The electric vehicles were
manufactured locally by Sherburn in Elmet based Optare. Robert Drewery,
Commercial Director at Optare said: ‘Optare is delighted that these
award winning electric buses, currently the most efficient in the UK,
have proven to deliver such an impact on local air quality in a
relatively short period of time. As the leaders in UK electric bus
technology, we will continue to develop our electric vehicle technology
and work with local authorities and operators, such as First York, to
ensure more electric buses like these operate in our region and
throughout the UK in the future.”
Cllr Ian Gillies, Executive member
for Transport and Planning, said: "Over four million passenger journeys
are made on York's Park & Ride service each year, making it one of
the most well used services in the country. The fact that electric buses
have collectively accumulated one million kilometres reinforces our
commitment and investment in working to reduce emissions, improving air
quality and increasing transport options for residents and visitors to
York."
This milestone also follows the
recent news that First Bus has been awarded ‘Low Carbon Vehicle Operator
of the Year 2016’ at the prestigious Low Carbon Champions Awards.
The first electric buses were
introduced in June 2014, and run the majority of services for the York
Park & Ride. For more information on First York visit www.firstgroup.com/york.
