In the midst of celebrations of Climate Week in Scotland, Glasgow Airport has become the first airport in the United Kingdom to introduce a fleet of 100% electric buses as a measure to reduce CO₂ emissions while maintaining operations between the terminal and the long-stay car park.
The fleet, which integrates three vehicles manufactured in Scotland and counts on a £450,000 Green Bus Fund support grant from Transport Scotland, will substitute the current diesel models.
The airport has installed a charging centre for these vehicles, which feature 23 seats, three-tier luggage compartments and wheelchair provisions.
The electrification of this fleet is part of a series of initiatives run by Glasgow Airport aimed at reducing its carbon footprint. Another example of this green initiative took place at the beginning of this year when the airport invested 200,000 pounds for the introduction of eight hybrid vehicles for operations inside the airport.
“We are proud to be the first UK airport to incorporate a fleet of fully electric buses for passenger transport between the terminal and our long-stay car park. Moving on to a fully electric operation will reduce our annual carbon emissions from the current 143 tons to zero, because even the electricity that these new vehicles will consume is currently produced at our airport from renewable energy sources”
As part of the AGS group, Glasgow Airport has also joined the 203 airports committed to the resolution of the Airports Council international (ACI) ‘NetZero2050’, also aimed at zeroing its environmental impact in 2050.
This measure is part of the green movement that several companies in the UK have been embracing as part of their sustainable strategies in the last couple of years. Last August, Amey, Ferrovial´s subsidiary in the UK, introduced a new fleet of 183 electric vehicles in the city of Sheffield, UK as a measure to reduce its carbon footprint in all of the company´s operations.
