City of York Council, in partnership with First Bus York and bus manufacturer Optare, has been nominated in the vehicle operator category for the 2015 Low Carbon Champion awards, after creating two fully electric Park & Ride routes.
A fleet of six buses was first introduced in June 2014 at the new Poppleton Bar Park & Ride site. This was then extended to include Monks Cross Park & Ride in May 2015.
Cllr Ian Gillies, Executive Member for Transport and Planning, said: “I am delighted that the work that the council is carrying out in partnership with First York Buses and Optare is being recognised on a national scale. I hope we will be able to continue to build on this and help make York an even more sustainable city.”
Ben Gilligan, Managing Director of First York added, “We’re thrilled to be short-listed for a Low Carbon Champion Award which is recognition of the really positive impact of the electric vehicles in York. By working in partnership with City of York Council and Optare we’ve been able to provide a better environment for residents as well as continuing to deliver high quality, great value services.”
Enrico Vassallo, CEO of Optare, said, “I am delighted that our electric bus technology has been recognized and shortlisted for this prestigious industry award.
“We continue to work with the LowCVP, DfT, SMMT, TfL, operators like First York and local authorities, such as the City of York Council to promote the uptake of electric vehicle technology and ensure sustained successful operation of these vehicles, whilst gaining data for the continued development of electric vehicles.”
The electric buses are helping to reduce CO2 emissions by 62% in real world operation, according to First Bus data. The most recent data shows that when operating in service on York’s Park & Ride routes, the ‘Well to Wheel’ efficiency is 409g/km of Carbon emitted compared to a standard diesel Park & Ride bus at 1078g/km.
