Hermes’ New Eco-fleet Delivers on Sustainability

by Poppy Gaunt

· Tech and Innovation,Climate Change

What's Going On Here?

Hermes, one of the UK’s busiest parcel carriers, has invested in a fleet of vehicles that run on 100% renewable biofuel.

The delivery company expects that using Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) instead of diesel will reduce its fleet’s CO₂ emissions by more than 80%.

What Does This Mean?

As well as the CNG vehicles, Hermes is also introducing a fleet of 100% electric vans to deliver within central London.

Martin de Lange, CEO of Hermes UK said: “We are committed to helping improve air quality in the capital and supporting London on its path to a zero-emission future.”

The company hopes that this effort to reduce emissions will help it reach its target of a 50% carbon reduction by 2020.

The rise in popularity of online shopping has seen emissions from delivery companies, such as Hermes, skyrocket. Before the online revolution, the majority of ‘last mile’ deliveries (the final stretch from a distribution centre to a package’s destination) were made to stores.

Why Should We Care?

Today the last mile of most parcels is traveling directly to people’s doorsteps, leading to more journeys and more congestion and pollution.

In addition to delivering orders to multiple destinations, drivers often have to repeat deliveries when the person isn’t home to receive it, which could double or even treble the mileage per parcel.

Low-emissions delivery vehicles are a welcome step towards reducing the impact of our online shopping addiction. Turning the last mile into the green mile!

Be Curious!

Online shopping isn’t necessarily the bad guy - you can do a few simple things to make it a much greener habit.

Plan ahead - by not shopping last minute you’re less likely to panic buy unnecessary items and you can consolidate your orders into fewer packages
Avoid speedy shipping - yes, even if it’s free!
Click and collect - avoid the dreaded ‘sorry we missed you’ note and reduce your parcel’s mileage

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