Today, leading ride-hailing app FREE NOW announces that it will be offering green spaces and gardens for local communities, paving the way for its Green Pledge promise for a better future. Consumers will be able to join the movement and create their own gardens by applying for seeds packs online.
Research commissioned by FREE NOW shows that 93% of Brits think it would be beneficial for the people in their community to plant flowers and trees in the local area and 79% agree that having a shared green space brings a sense of community to an area; with this in mind FREE NOW will be curating and delivering a number of ultra-effective carbon-consuming micro-gardens to communities, nominated by the eco-conscious residents living in them.
Plants are integral to nurturing our planet, cleaning the air we breathe; filtering the water we drink and providing habitat to much of the world’s expansive biodiversity. In addition to this, 67% of brits agreed that tending to plants in their homes and gardens helped to reduce stress and anxiety.
The launch follows the recent announcement of FREE NOW’s Green Pledge and sustainability targets in January 2021. Across the UK, FREE NOW has committed to making all taxis electric by 2024 and all private hire vehicles by 2025, going further than the government’s sustainability targets and any competitor to protect the environment and our planet.
Across Europe, the mobility platform will make all trips zero-emission by 2030 and in the meantime, while these goals are met, through preservation and regeneration of forests and planting more than 20,000 trees across European cities.
As part of its Green Pledge, FREE NOW will be working with drivers, passengers, regulators, government and businesses in the UK and investing over £20 million into supporting drivers switching to electric vehicles. Currently, FREE NOW is the only app where consumers can select an EV-only option and all non-EV trips are already carbon offset. FREE NOW is the first large player in the UK ride-hailing market to complete more than half its taxi trips in electric vehicles.
Mariusz Zabrocki, UK General Manager at FREE NOW said “As a business we play an integral part in the evolution of the London ride-hailing industry towards greener and cleaner travel. We are really excited to be delivering green spaces to different communities to mark the announcement of our Green Pledge. We know that green spaces are beneficial for our planet, not to mention our communities and mental wellbeing. We want to start a movement where people can start growing their own bit of green space across cities, in addition to building some green spaces of our own for Londoners, we hope that spaces will give residents the chance to connect with nature, and breathe in cleaner air.”
“We are already at the forefront of this with over 60% of our taxi trips already being completed in electric vehicles and we have the largest fleet of electric black cabs in London.
“We are going one step further and pledging to shift to a fleet that is fully zero emission capable as quickly as possible. Working with drivers, passengers, regulators, the Government and businesses, we all need to act now to improve air quality in our cities, making them better places to be.”
The gardens will be unveiled on 10th March with a green ribbon cutting and a secret-garden style installation.
FREE NOW will also be offering consumers UK-wide a free packet of mixed seeds to start their own garden, simply by applying on the FREE NOW website. To redeem your seeds or be in with a chance to win a community micro-garden, simply enter the competition at https://free-now.com/uk/win-a-garden-for-your-community/
