National Express will deliver the first sustainable shuttle bus service to Glastonbury Festival.
The public transport operator has partnered with electric vehicle (EV) fleet and battery storage specialist Zenobē, which is committed to the decarbonisation of mass passenger transport to and from large-scale events.
Zenobē will provide National Express with eight electric double-decker buses to service its Bristol-Glastonbury route, during the festival, which takes place June 21 to 26 at Worthy Farm. This year's headliners include Arctic Monkeys, Guns N' Roses, and Elton John.
In addition to providing zero-emission buses, Zenobē will set up a pop-up charging station enabling National Express to charge the vehicles close to where they are needed instead of travelling to a central bus depot. For this, Zenobē is providing four fast DC chargers and a Powerskid made from second-life batteries for National Express to use for the duration of the festival, enabling each fully charged electric bus to travel up to 173 miles.
The shuttle service will run from Bristol Bus and Coach Station directly to Worthy Farm, with each bus expected to make three journeys a day, avoiding 348kg of carbon emissions compared with diesel alternatives.
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The partnership builds on the pre-existing relationship between Zenobē and National Express, where in February 2022, Zenobē agreed to provide 130 electric buses for National Express to operate in Coventry.
Steven Meersman, co-founder and director of Zenobē, said: “This summer we’re providing the first sustainable bus route to what is arguably the world’s most iconic music festival, and we’re pleased to be partnering with National Express to reach another milestone together.
“We’ve paired two of Zenobē’s unique offers: second-life EV batteries and our Electric Transport as-a-Service platform, to enable National Express to easily and affordably access an electric bus fleet and conveniently charge it near to the festival site.
“It marks an important step in the decarbonisation of the festivals and events industry, where huge numbers of people flock to remote locations for just a few days but to date have not had sustainable ways of getting there. It’s an innovative solution for sustainable festival and events travel which we look forward to introducing to the sector.”
Tom Berry, zero emissions vehicle specialist at National Express, added: “We’re pleased to be able to run these zero emission buses for the very first time to Glastonbury, a festival which has always had sustainability at its very core. As the official coach travel partner for Glastonbury, we’re experienced in providing reliable and affordable dedicated services direct to Worthy Farm, carrying over 12,000 revellers from all over the UK each year.
“It’s great to be able to work with Zenobē to introduce more sustainable means of public transport for our customers and by having access to pop-up chargers on site for the first time, we’re able to operate our festival services more efficiently - leading the charge in cleaner and greener travel solutions.”
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