Gloucestershire Constabulary has won a prestigious national award for its commitment to running electric vehicles within its fleet.
With more than 75 vehicles (21%) in Gloucestershire’s fleet now fully electric, the Force has the largest percentage of electric police vehicles in the UK. This latest award sees the Force’s transport services department given first prize in the Greenfleet Public Sector Fleet of the Year (Small to Medium Category) in an award ceremony, which took place virtually on Wednesday 2 December 2020.
The commitment to electric motoring is encouraged by Gloucestershire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Martin Surl, whose Police and Crime Plan lists ‘A Green and Pleasant County’ as one of his six policing priorities. His support of green initiatives has also led to Gloucestershire being the only police force to hold the ISO 14001 certification for environmental improvements within its buildings.
Mr Surl said: “This year our Force has made a huge leap forward in its commitment to reduce carbon and pollution and I’m incredibly proud of the transport services department for making my hopes to electrify the fleet a reality. It is one thing for me to set these ambitious goals, but without the support and dedication of the workforce, this fantastic achievement would not have been able to happen. Our commitment to a Green and Pleasant County is clear, and I hope this award is the first of many acknowledging our support of green initiatives in Gloucestershire.”
The vehicles help to deliver savings of around 283 tonnes of Co2 per year, alongside a financial saving thanks to decreased fuel costs and reduced servicing. It’s hoped that the Force will be able to extend its electric fleet to 40 percent within the next four years.
Steve Imm is head of transport services at Gloucestershire Constabulary and was commended as Public Sector Fleet Manager of the Year in the awards. He said: “I’m so pleased that the department now has this formal recognition and can call itself a national champion. The hard work and dedication from my team has proven they are a credit to the organisation. They have helped put Gloucestershire on the map as one of the greenest public sector fleets anywhere in the UK.”
Gloucestershire’s large fleet is outnumbered only by the Metropolitan Police, which has 546 eco-vehicles in its fleet – a figure achieved through a combination of hybrid, hydrogen fuel cell and fully electric vehicles. However, with 21% of Gloucestershire’s fleet made up of fully-electric vehicles it becomes the largest fully-electric fleet in the country, by way of percentage.
While none of the vehicles are used as response vehicles, the majority are used by local investigation teams to help to deliver a savings of 283 tonnes of Co2 per year. 11 of the vehicles are fully marked up as traditional police cars with ‘zero emission’ labelling, and will help to save money for the force too, with estimated savings of over £138,000 per year as a result of decreased fuel costs and savings to servicing, in comparison to diesel vehicles.
Gloucestershire Constabulary is the only force in the country to hold the environmental certification ISO 14001 – the international standard for environment management systems, which was awarded to the force in 2007, and has been recertified four times, with the most recent in February 2019.
