Best Startup
Ground-breaking new train ticketing service Trainhugger is enabling people to explore Britain by rail, see friends and family again and care for the planet – all at the touch of a button. Every time a passenger books a train journey through the Trainhugger app or Trainhugger.com, a tree is planted here in the UK.
Crucially for Trainhugger customers, this investment in the countryside’s future comes at no extra cost to them. Passengers have access to the best available fares and pay the same ticket price as they would elsewhere. The difference is that Trainhugger donates a third of its revenue to tree planting.
The company’s innovative technology has come on board just in time for English Tourism Week 2021 (22-31 May), a celebration of the best destinations this country has to offer and a much-needed boost for the UK travel industry which has been hit hard by the pandemic.
“This is a really easy way for people to change their behaviour and become greener without it costing them any more” said Trainhugger CEO and founder Ed Caldecott. “If you’re planning a trip, book your train ticket with us and we’ll plant a tree in your name.
“We want to make sure that every Trainhugger tree that goes into the soil is both the right species and planted in the best place possible, so we have teamed up with the experts at the Royal Forestry Society (RFS) and the Royal Scottish Forestry Society (RSFS).
“Together, we have set up a special Trainhugger grant for their members. It means we could potentially be planting millions of trees every year across the UK.”
RFS Development Manager Jen Turner said: “This truly is a pioneering project. The lockdowns have made many of us more aware than ever of opportunities to cut our climate impact and improve local air quality. Trainhugger delivers so many benefits in these areas.
“Every booking through the Trainhugger platform means a tree will be planted and managed expertly for the future. Train travel also produces significantly less CO2 than traditional car travel so this is a win-win for conscientious travellers, the environment and for those planting resilient woodland.”
Customers can access all their journey information in the Trainhugger app, which also keeps track of how many trees each user has planted and how much carbon has been saved.
As restrictions ease and we look forward to a summer of staycations and meeting up with friends, it’s the perfect time to think about which of the UK’s exciting destinations to visit next. Trainhugger wants to make sure our new-found freedom doesn’t come at the expense of the environment and plans to plant 10 million trees by 2025.
The Trainhugger app is available to download for free for both iOS and Android users, and there is further booking information at Trainhugger.com.
