Mitie switches to electric vehicles for green landscaping service

Facilities management and professional services company Mitie has launched a green landscaping service that only uses electric vehicles.

Mitie’s service will use a Mercedes e-Vito electric van which has been custom-fitted with solar panels on its roof to generate renewable energy. 

The energy generated will be used to charge the battery-powered landscaping equipment without affecting the charge of the van’s own battery. 

The Mercedes e-Vito joins the 449 other electric vehicles which have joined Mitie’s fleet, one of the largest electric fleets in the UK, in just over a year.

This is Mitie’s 550th electric vehicle, meaning the company is three-quarters of the way to meeting its 20% target of switching vehicles to electric by the end of 2020.

All EV charge points at Mitie sites are already powered by renewable energy, bringing Mitie one step closer to its 2025 net zero carbon emissions objective.

Mitie’s new service will use flexible work schedules to help reduce the traffic in the cities it will be operating in at peak times.

The launch is another step towards Mitie achieving its Plan Zero commitment of reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2025, 25 years ahead of the UK government’s own 2050 target.

The Plan Zero City Landscaping Service is being launched in London and will be rolled-out to other major cities across the UK later this year.