A new, free, electric shuttle bus service is now in operation at SEGRO Logistics Park East Midlands Gateway (SLPEMG), making commuting to and from the site by public transport more viable for the thousands of people who will work there. The new bus service provides free travel between the SLPEMG bus interchange, located at the entrance to the site, and each of the employment units throughout the day, which could save up to 15 minutes per journey compared to walking, and makes navigating the 700-acre site easier. With a 10-fold increase in the number of workers at the site expected by Sept 2020 compared to April 2019, the Gateway Shuttle will become increasingly important in making the site more accessible by public transport.
Trent Barton’s Skylink service connects Nottingham, Derby, Loughborough and Leicester with the SLPEMG bus interchange, where passengers can then board the free Gateway Shuttle bus and be dropped right outside their workplace. Kate Bedson, Senior Development Director at SEGRO, said: “One of the things that makes SEGRO Logistics Park East Midlands Gateway a great place for business is its location, both for moving goods around the country and being easily accessible for employees living in the surrounding towns and cities. The new electric bus service will make travelling to and from work using public transport much easier and more practical for many people who work there already or who will do so in the future.”
Seeking to reduce its carbon footprint, and working with Nottingham City Council, SEGRO secured funding to install an electric bus charging facility at the site and is now working in partnership with Nottingham-based bus company CT4N, one of the largest operators of battery powered electric buses in the UK, to run the service.
CT4N’s Managing Director Ian Combellack said: “I am delighted that CT4N has been chosen to operate the new Gateway Shuttle service and that it will be operated with electric buses, providing a valuable link around the 700-acre site. I look forward to working in partnership with SEGRO, as the service grows and develops in the future.”
