Zest helps West Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service to power its EV fleet

Zest, one of the UK’s fastest growing Electric Vehicle (EV) charge point operators, has announced a new partnership with West Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service (WYFRS). The first two charge points are running at its Leeds station, with work also underway at Bradford, in a partnership that will provide further charge points at multiple sites to serve WYFRS’ growing fleet of electric vehicles.

One of 44 Fire & Rescue Services in England and Wales, WYFRS is the fourth biggest Metropolitan Service in England - serving a population of more than two million people, across 800 square miles. Its ranking as the top fire and rescue authority in the region means WYFRS is one of the best in the country and the service has a strong focus on sustainability. The new contract will see WYFRS own the installation equipment which will be connected to help power its fleet of support cars and vans, contributing to its environmental priorities. The charge points will be operated and maintained by Zest.

The partnership will introduce charge points at two to three WYFRS sites every year, with the first deployment now complete at its Leeds station, Bradford underway and more sites planned in the future. Each location will offer up to six charge points.

Earlier this year WYFRS published its Environmental Sustainability Strategy, setting out how it will improve the way its resources are used to protect the environment and reduce its carbon footprint where possible.

WYFRS Head of Estates, Richard Young, commented: “Working with Zest to bring electric charging to our sites is an important step in our overall efforts to become a more sustainable organisation.”

"Having on-site charging facilities enables overnight charging and accommodates vehicles returning to base but needing a quick charge – which is critical in our line of work and supports our public protection duties as well as our sustainability targets.”

Zest CEO Robin Heap said: “We are delighted that WYFRS chose to work with Zest to support their ambitious EV rollout. With one of the UK’s largest teams of EV charging experts, and providing a fully managed service, we can provide the long-term dependability that is essential for blue light services.” 

Zest worked with Yorkshire-based contractors Downtown Electrical and Devitech to complete the installation work.