City In The UK Is Turning All Of Its Bus Stops Into Green Roof Pollinator Gardens For Bees

Photo: Alec Gomes/ Unsplash; Clear Channel

As the population of bees worldwide has been declining at alarming rates, several initiatives are taking place to reverse the trend.

An example is seen in the city of Leicester in the United Kingdom, which has implemented a sustainable project to help the local bee population expand.

The project is part of the city's 10-year-long initiative to 'be a carbon neutral, biodiverse, and climate-adapted city'.

They have thus begun replacing traditional bus stops with 'Bee Bus Stops', which are officially being referred to as Living Roof bus shelters for bees.

The roofs are solar-powered and covered with pollinator gardens which primarily contain a mix of wildflowers and Sedum plants. These are some of the types of plants that bees are mostly attracted to.

Leicester Deputy City Mayor Cllr Adam Clarke, said of the project:

"It's great to see the first of Leicester's new living roof bus shelters appearing across the city. We've already had some fantastic feedback from people who are as excited as we are to see this bee and butterfly friendly revamp of bus shelters taking shape. But this is just one of many benefits of the citywide revamp of our bus shelters."

He added:

"The new, modern shelters will be great for passengers and the mix of solar power and living roofs is another step forward for our ambition to be a carbon neutral and climate-adapted city by 2030."

The initiative is the first of its kind in the UK and apart form supporting the city's pollinator populations, also serves as a way to absorb rainwater, reducing the Urban Heat Island Effect, capturing particles in the air and supporting biodiversity.

The 10-year contract is formed between Leicester City Council and advertising and infrastructure company, Clear Channel UK. The company aims to revamp the city's 479 bus shelters in their entirety by 2022.

A post shared by Clear Channel UK (@clearchanneluk)

A post shared by Clear Channel UK (@clearchanneluk)

A post shared by Clear Channel UK (@clearchanneluk)

[h/t: My Modern Met]