“Eggscellent” initiative rewards green transport at the Babraham Research Campus

24th April 2007

The Babraham Institute has adopted new ways for its staff to travel between jobs on the 450 acre estate, abandoning cars in favour of less polluting modes of transport to reduce its carbon footprint. The Institute, which has an active Green Transport Policy, has acquired three Pashley Loadster 35 tricycles to transport engineering staff and the tools of their trade when they attend call outs. The trikes are a further addition to Babraham's “Green Fleet”, which includes two “MegaMultiTruck” electric vans used by engineering staff, the security team and for other work requiring bulky equipment across the Babraham Research Campus. Running the rechargeable electric vans, which can reach 30 mph, is not only cleaner and greener, but is around seven times cheaper than the cost of using diesel estate cars over short distances on the campus.

Julian Patrick, Building Supervisor, who suggested promoting pedal power at the campus said, “The trikes have proved very popular. We all enjoy using them to get between jobs and members of staff have even taken to borrowing them at lunch times for a little exercise.”

Mrs Jude Caldwell who co-ordinates Babraham's Green Transport Policy said, “Seeing these new vehicles in constant use around the site will prove that there are other, more sustainable ways to travel; while they may not be an option in every circumstance, if we can make people aware of the alternative to cars then it's a great start.”

Working closely with the Cambridgeshire Travel for Work (TfW) Partnership and other local Green Travel Co-ordinators, the Institute is encouraging alternative methods of travel and working arrangements to reduce the environmental impact of commuting. Earlier this month, Babraham's 'Another Way Day' encouraged staff to rethink their journey to work; those who walked, ran, cycled, car-shared or took the bus to work were rewarded with a Creme Egg from the Easter Bunny. This 'eggscellent' initiative brought several new car-sharers together after consulting TfW's home postcode mapping service and egged on others to dust down their saddles and cycle to work for the first time.

Photographs are available on request.

Contact details:

Dr Claire Cockcroft
Head, External Relations
Contact by email

Tel: +44 (0)1223 496260
Fax: +44 (0)1223 496002
Mobile: +44 (0)7786 335978

About the Babraham Institute

The Babraham Institute is a charitable organisation devoted to biomedical research and is an institute of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). The Institute’s research is focused on understanding the biological events that underlie the normal functions of cells and on how their failure or abnormality may lead to disease. As such, Institute scientists are striving to find cures for conditions where there is currently no treatment or where the existing treatment is not fully effective or causes serious side effects. The latest technologies are being used to study the basis of conditions such as neurodegenerative disorders, birth defects, cancer and diseases of the immune and cardiovascular systems. With a strategic focus on ‘healthy ageing’, novel approaches for tackling chronic diseases and public health concerns like obesity are being discovered. The Institute’s innovative research is commercialised through Babraham Bioscience Technologies (BBT) Ltd, which also manages Babraham’s vibrant Bioincubator on the Babraham Research Campus, six miles south-east of Cambridge.  Website: www.babraham.co.uk