Hull Paragon Station is set for Global Recycling Day as TransPennine Express and local artist Andy Pea reveal a sculpture made completely of recycled materials.

The temporary artwork will be on display at Hull Paragon station for just one day, even though over 50 hours of work went into its creation.

The sculpture which contains over a tonne of water bottles, cups, cardboard, newspapers and plastic waste collected from TransPennine Express’s (TPE’s) trains and the station itself.

Hull-based artist, Andy Pea was commissioned by TPE to create the sculpture which offers an impressionist inspired view of one of their trains in celebration of Global Recycling Day on Friday the 18th of March 2022. The sculpture intended to demonstrate the rail operators’ aims to go greener and cut its carbon footprint even further.

The pupils of local Adelaide Primary School also played a part in the sculpture by collecting recyclable items and also drawing with their own ideas for the sculpture which Andy used as inspiration when creating the final piece.

Fran Barrett, Business Assurance Director at TransPennine Express said:

“We are committed to protecting the environment for future generations, and we wanted to commission this temporary sculpture to highlight this commitment ahead of Global Recycling Day. Recycling our waste is one key part of our sustainability strategy and in 2021 we collected and recycled 221 tonnes of recyclable waste.

“In recent years, we have increased our recycling rates from 36 per cent to 64 per cent and we have a target to increase our recycling again this year. Any waste that we can’t recycle is sent to Energy From Waste to generate electricity, as we continue to send zero waste to landfill.

“With Global Recycling Day approaching, we wanted to show our continued dedication to recycling and work with Andy to create something special to mark the day. We’re delighted with the result!”

Andy Pea has been an artist for over 25 years and has created artwork in the UK, Europe and Mexico, said:

“I’m thrilled I could work with TPE on this project, and it was fantastic to see so many admirers of the work at the station today, including the children from Adelaide Primary School, who did a fantastic job in providing me with the inspiration to create the sculpture.”

TPE is making headway in becoming greener and is set to bring down its carbon emissions by 30% per vehicle kilometre as soon as April 2023. The rail operator’s new Nova train fleet features bi-mode and electric trains and will bring passengers CO2 emissions by 77% when compared to travel using an average car.

Hull Trains and Northern also operate services out of Hull Paragon Station and joined TPE as the sculpture was unveiled demonstrating their own commitment to sustainability and aims to look for positive changes to operate that supports the environment.

Global Recycling Day has been running since 2018 and its aim is to help recognise and celebrate the importance that recycling has in preserving primary resources and securing the future of the planet.

To find out more about TPE’s sustainability drive, please visit:
http://tpexpress.co.uk