Pharmacy and healthcare retailer Boots has introduced five electric vans into its fleet. The Renault Kangoo iVans will run in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.
The vans will be used for the service that picks up prescriptions and delivers them to Boots pharmacy customer’s homes.
Boots investment in the vans is part of the businesses commitment to continue to reduce the environmental impact of its operations. The company anticipates that the vans will reduce their environmental footprint by about 22 carbon tonnes per year, based on an estimated 65,000 drops to customers per annum. If successful, the pilot will be expanded to other areas in the UK.
The fleet of five electric vans will run from the Boots site in Beeston. 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 fuel efficiency and safety.
Nottingham City Transport’s Ultra Low Emission Vehicle Scheme 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,” said Eddie Storr, head of supply chain pharmacy, Boots UK.
“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 by introducing zero emission delivery vehicles. Following the launch in Nottingham, we are looking at other locations around the country to expand our electric fleet.”
