The Zoo Bus Needs You

People across Edinburgh and the Lothians will have another opportunity to vote for which wild animal will appear on the latest fleet of Lothian buses.

The last public vote saw the ‘Otterly Awesome’ otter bus join the ranks, alongside lions, giant pandas and flamingos, and now RZSS Edinburgh Zoo is giving residents another chance to get involved.  This time the chimpanzee, the blue poison arrow frog and the zebra are up for the vote, with the winning design hitting the road at the start of March 2018.

As part of the three-year partnership between Edinburgh Zoo and Lothian, the winning animal will appear on one of Lothian’s 26 buses, known locally as the “Zoo bus”, alongside the recently launched penguin, koala, red panda and tiger buses. The fleet of 30 new buses were launched last September as part of Lothian’s fleet replacement strategy and will reduce Co2 emissions by 25% compared with its current vehicles.

Votes can be cast on the Edinburgh Zoo website and social media channels from Monday 12 February.

Barbara Smith, Chief Executive at RZSS Edinburgh Zoo, said: “We are very excited to announce the new public vote. Otters were the clear winner last time and it is great to see the public getting involved and voting for their favourite animal.

“The new bus designs perfectly encapsulate all that is wonderful about RZSS Edinburgh Zoo. From our much-loved penguins to the fascinating Natal dwarf chameleons, there is a vast collection to explore and conservation work that makes an international impact. The buses are always really popular and we are sure the latest eye catching designs will capture everyone’s imagination. 

“We are also pleased that our partnership with Lothian continues to go from strength to strength and look forward to our visitors catching the number 26 ‘Zoo bus’ for years to come.”

Gaynor Marshall, Communications Director at Lothian, said: “We are delighted that our customers have the opportunity again to vote for which animal they’d like to see join the otter, penguin, lion and many others on our service 26.

“The colourful, fun designs which already feature on our low emission buses as part of our partnership with RZSS, have really captured the imagination of the public and highlight the amazing animal collection which can be found at Edinburgh Zoo. We hope our customers will take time to vote and look forward to the addition of the chimpanzee, the blue poison arrow frog or the zebra to our fleet!”

The 26 Service connects communities from the west of the city to East Lothian. It has become known locally as the “Zoo bus” as it drops thousands of customers at the entrance of RZSS Edinburgh Zoo.

As a conservation charity, RZSS believes that conservation and protecting the environment go hand in hand. Working in over 20 countries around the world, the Society’s team of experts work around the clock tackling issues affecting rare and endangered species.

Voters can choose their favourite animal via the Zoo’s social media channels at http://woobox.com/evooj2