City Link drives safety agenda with 85 new trailers

Express delivery company City Link has invested £2.3m in 85 new curtain-sided trailers and five box trailers from Lawrence David. Safety is at the core of the new single-deck trailer specification. The new curtain-siders will have internal load restraint systems and will also be built to the exacting load securing EN standard. Additionally, all the trailers are fitted with a state of the art braking system to prevent runaways. Two of the five box trailers will have fitted tail-lifts further increasing City Link’s operational flexibility, a real differentiating feature in the marketplace.

This latest order is on top of the company’s investment in 86 bespoke double-deck trailers prior to the Christmas peak, which contributed to one of the most successful peak periods in the company’s history. The ongoing investment is part of City Link’s ambitious plan to replace its entire vehicle fleet, and means that 40% of the trunking fleet has now been refreshed.

Also significant is the fact that, by the end of April, City Link will have moved away from rentals completely with all vehicles on contract hire (with full repair and maintenance included) from leading contract hire, fleet management and rental solutions company Fraikin. This new approach gives the company much greater control over quality and reliability of its fleet.

City Link’s UK Processing and Linehaul Director, Bob Powner, said: “This is the second phase of a significant ongoing investment programme in trailers and our vehicle fleet as a whole. The safety and security of our people and the goods we carry is at the very heart of our operational strategy and our customer offering and we are delighted with the security and safety enhancements these new units give us. I think Lawrence David has done a great job for us on these trailers, justifying their reputation for state of the art and cost competitive coach building services.”