UK pharmaceutical company, Boots, is introducing a fleet of five electric vans to operate its prescription delivery and collection service, which it hopes will reduce its environmental footprint by approximately 22 carbon tons per year.
Customers in Nottingham and Derbyshire will be the first to benefit from the initiative, where Boots will pilot the service using five fully-electric Renault Kangoo iVans. The vans will pick up prescriptions from Boots stores and deliver to patients’ homes.
The fleet of 5 electric vans will run from the Boots site in Beeston, supporting Boots pharmacies and customers across Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. Each zero emission vehicle is fitted with Lightfoot Technology, a real-time engine analysis system that provides live, in-cab coaching to help drivers improve both fuel efficiency and safety.
Nottingham City Transport’s ‘Ultra Low Emission Vehicle’ Scheme’ (ULEV) has supported the scheme by helping to create charging stations on the Boots site to power the new electric vehicles.
“Running over 9,500 routes a week with a van fleet of 900, we are continually looking at ways to improve both the efficiency of our service and its environmental impact. Over the last six months, we have achieved significant mileage reductions through better route planning and the next step on our journey is to reduce our carbon footprint is to introduce zero emission delivery vehicles. Following the launch in Nottingham, we are looking at other locations around the country to expand our electric fleet,” said Eddie Storr, head of supply chain pharmacy, Boots UK.
Boots has said if the pilot is successful, the initiative will be expanded to other areas in the UK.
