Grant aid is supporting Weston-super-Mare’s Grand Pier in its continuing drive to be cleaner and greener by helping to pay for two new electric vehicles.

The new vehicles have been built by Bradshaw, the UK’s largest manufacturer of electric vehicles for industry, and cost a total of £52,000.

They will replace the attraction’s existing diesel truck, which will be sold, and used to transport goods and supplies up and down the Pier.

The purchase was made possible thanks to a £15,000 green business grant from the West of England Combined Authority.

These grants can be used for capital purchases to improve the energy efficiency of business operations, as well as for capital works to improve the energy efficiency of buildings.

Bradshaw vehicles have low noise levels, excellent manoeuvrability and no emissions, which means they can be safely used both inside and out.

Tim Moyle, General Manager of the Grand Pier, said:

“We were pleased to receive the grant, which recognises our continuing commitment towards operating a more sustainable business.

“This is the latest in a series of measures we have adopted, from recycling initiatives to wooden take-away cutlery and, last year, the introduction of reusable Eco-Cups, and we also removed Christmas crackers from our festive parties because of the amount of plastic waste they result in.”

Another new initiative being adopted by the seafront attraction is a trial project which involves the removal of the ‘standard’ waste bins in The Boardwalk restaurant and replacing them with a new Recycling Station.

Tim said:

“The aim is to encourage our guests to recycle as much as possible and, if the trial is successful, we hope to introduce more recycling stations across the site.

“We’ve also started labelling many of our waste bins as ‘landfill’, to encourage guests to think about not disposing items that could be recycled.

“We take our corporate social responsibility extremely seriously and are totally committed to doing everything we can to help protect the planet for future generations and are willing to invest tens of thousands of pounds to do so.”

In recognition of its continually increasing environment-friendly credentials, The Grand Pier was recently shortlisted as a finalist in the Green Business category in the recent Weston Business Awards.

For further information about the wide range of events, activities and attractions available at the Grand Pier all year round, visit www.grandpier.co.uk