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Thursday 18 Oct 2018

Passengers can now tap-in to free water at Scotland’s biggest stations

Region & Route:

Scotland’s Railway: Scotland

Network Rail Scotland has launched free water fountains for customers at Glasgow Central and Edinburgh Waverley.

Two drinking water fountains have been installed at each station to encourage passengers, and other station users, to refill their own multiple use water bottles rather than buying plastic ones.

The scheme is part of Network Rail’s wider ambitions to improve sustainability and reduce the impact of plastic waste at its stations.

The company also recently announced plans to work with retailers to end the supply of plastic cutlery and cups at its station across Britain by 2020.

Network Rail’s free drinking water initiative was first launched in London’s Charing Cross station in February 2018.

It has since been expanded to many major stations across the country including Liverpool Lime Street, Birmingham New Street, Manchester Piccadilly and London Euston.

Each location is saving the equivalent of up to 1,000 plastic bottles each week and by the end of September this the year, Network Rail stations had saved over 150,000 plastic bottles.

David Biggs, managing director of Network Rail Property, said: “Our water fountain roll-out is already going a long way to reducing plastic pollution and it is fantastic to see the progress made so far, with 150,000 bottles saved in 2018.

“The initiative is not only a great example of how we’re committed to making our stations more sustainable, but shows how we’re delivering a great experience for the 900 million people who use our stations each year, making it as easy as possible for them to refill their bottles on the go.”