The UK’s largest electricity company, National Grid, has partnered with micromobility operator Beryl by sponsoring its flagship fleet in the city of Norwich, England.
The partnership will allow Beryl to run more projects with charities and community groups to make sustainable travel more accessible.
Rhian Kelly, Chief Sustainability Officer at National Grid, said: “Partnering with the communities we serve on projects that will cut carbon emissions strongly aligns with our sustainability values and ambitions, and we’re pleased to collaborate with Beryl on this scheme in Norwich.”
Launched first as a bike share scheme in March 2020, e-bikes were then added to the Norwich scheme in July 2020, followed by e-scooters in January 2021.
The scheme has generated more than 761,000 journeys saving nearly 30 tonnes of CO2, according to industry calculations.
Beryl has installed more than 100 ‘Beryl Bays’ which means that 113,793 people in Norwichs’s scheme’s 68 sw km service area are a 5-minute walk from a bay. This represents 60% of the service area’s population.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for us to partner with a globally recognised organisation that shares our outlook and values around the decarbonisation of transport,” said Beryl’s CEO and Co-Founder, Phil Ellis.
Councillor Lana Hempsall, Sustainable Transport Champion at Norfolk County Council, commented: “The green bikes and e-scooters are now well known across Norwich and many of our locals and visitors have become ‘Beryl converts’ using them to make those shorter journeys to work, education and leisure, rather than taking their car.”
“Having National Grid on board is going to create some great opportunities for our scheme and will allow us to do even more to develop the scheme and encourage even more people to leave the car at home which is key in helping us to achieve our ambitious net-zero objectives.”
