Sustainable delivery pioneers, Zedify, yesterday (6th April 2022) celebrated a grand opening of their new logistics hub with Marvin Rees, Mayor of Bristol. Two new zero emission cargo trikes were revealed at the event which was attended by the local business community, council representatives and campaigners.
Zedify launched In Bristol in February 2021 with a £100,000 grant from Bristol City Council’s Go Ultra Low West project. The city is introducing a Clean Air Zone later this year and the council has the ambitious target of 95 per cent of all city centre deliveries being made by zero-emission vehicles within 10 years.
Annually, Zedify now make over 48,000 zero emission deliveries in Bristol, saving almost 10 tonnes CO2 emissions and preventing over 35,000 van journeys. Working with local businesses, national retailers and parcel carriers, and even Voi scooters, Zedify operate a sustainable urban logistics model and are fast becoming an essential part of Bristol’s clean air, low-carbon future.
With their new hub based right on the edge of the upcoming clean air zone and acting as a gateway, Zedify consolidate parcels and deliver them across the city using zero emission cargo bikes.
Attendees of Zedify’s grand opening got the chance to try out the cargo bikes for themselves and to speak with Bristol’s early adopter businesses to find out what it’s like working with a cargo bike logistics service.
Zedify customer and owner of the Bristol institution Wogan Cofee, James Wogan, said, “Choosing to deliver through Zedify was one of our first major steps towards our goal of carbon neutrality! We thought we would start local, making sure nearly every Bristol website customer can have their deliveries with zero emissions – I can’t think of a company better suited than Zedify to help us get underway.”
Marvin Rees, Mayor of Bristol, said, “Supporting businesses to have zero emission deliveries is vital for tackling poor air quality in Bristol. It will help us improve air quality and contribute to our ambitious goals of 95 per cent of city centre deliveries made by zero-emission vehicles within 10 years and Bristol becoming carbon neutral by 2030.
“Zero emission deliveries are a great way of removing polluting lorries and vans from our roads and city centre. We are looking forward to working with Zedify to help us create a healthier city.”
Zedify Bristol’s MD, Simon Whitehead said, “Zedify are fundamentally changing the way deliveries take place in the city, helping to make it a better place for everyone. We are privileged to have a brilliant bunch of clients and supporters championing what we do and we’re delighted by Bristol City Council’s progressive approach to transforming urban freight. Our new hub and new additions to our fleet are going to be a vital part of our growth over the next few months and my team and I are over the moon!”
Each year, congestion costs the UK economy £6.9billion and poor air quality causes nearly 40,000 early deaths. Vans and HGVs are also responsible for 32% of UK transport’s carbon emissions. Zedify’s model tackles these important issues head on as well as creating local, ethical employment opportunities. In the build up to Bristol’s Clean Air Zone launching later this year, Zedify will focus on engaging businesses in Bristol helping them discover a clean way to deliver to their customers. Alongside this, Zedify will expand their work with parcel carriers and national retailers, so thousands more parcels arriving at doorsteps in Bristol can be delivered using zero emissions.
Full press release by Harriet Hird.