Smart bus platform Zeelo, accessible vehicle specialist London Hire and Ocado Group have launched one of the UK’s first fully electric employee commuter services.
The new service was launched on 29 November and transports employees to and from Ocado Group and Ocado Retail’s head office locations in Hatfield from nearby locations such as St Albans and Welwyn Garden City.
The service uses a low-floor 16-seat Mellor Orion E battery-electric minibus. Claimed range on a single charge is 100 miles. The contract will inform the electrification of other Zeelo routes in the future. London Hire operates the vehicle and it is being charged out of a depot in Hertfordshire.
Zeelo and Ocado anticipate the all-electric bus programme will save 16 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually while offering a transport link for staff living in areas they describe as “underserved” by public transport.
It comes as Zeelo announces an ambition to transition all services into fully electric programmes by 2030. The platform currently runs smart bus services for 110 companies and schools around the world, transporting 5,000 people per day. It says that already saves over 7,000 tonnes of CO2 every year.
“Ocado is committed to being the UK’s most sustainable grocer,” says Mark Potter, Head of Building Services at Ocado Group. “This starts at our head office where we encourage employees to swap their car for a sustainable alternative. The introduction of the electric bus service with Zeelo allows our employees to benefit from a net zero commuting option.”
Sam Ryan, CEO of Zeelo, adds: “We’re delighted to be partnering with Ocado and London Hire, introducing our first electric service to the UK market. This is the start of a decade long journey for us in our goal to operate a fully electric fleet by 2030.
“Ocado is the perfect partner for our first deployment as we share the same tremendous passion for sustainability.”
routeone magazine is the indispensable resource for professional UK coach, bus and minibus operators. The home of vehicle sales and the latest bus and coach job vacancies, routeone connects professional PCV operators with complete and unrivalled news coverage.
