By Brandon Cook

Two of Scotlands busiest train stations have installed refillable water hubs to combat the waste of thousands of plastic bottles.

Passengers at Glasgow Central Station and Edinburgh Waverly will benifit from the use of refillable running water in the stations as part of the initiatative to reduce plastic waste.

It’s estimated that each station will save around 1000 plastic bottles a week, which equates to around 150,000 per year.

David Biggs, managing director of Network Rail Property, said: “Our water fountain roll-out is already going a long way to reducing plastic pollution and it is fantastic to see the progress made so far, with 150,000 bottles saved in 2018.

“The initiative is not only a great example of how we’re committed to making our stations more sustainable, but shows how we’re delivering a great experience for the 900 million people who use our stations each year, making it as easy as possible for them to refill their bottles on the go.”

The water stations were lodged in Londons Charing Cross station in February and has since spread to other major stations such as London Euston, Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street.

This will be welcome news for commuters and environmentalists alike, as the reduction of plastic remains a major talking point throughout the country.

Many restauraunts and bars throughout the country have reduced usage of plastic straws and cups, meanwhile Network Rail have said that they will work with their food suppliers to reduce plastic cutlery.

Greenpeace UK senior oceans campaigner Louise Edge said: “A million single-use plastic bottles are bought worldwide every minute, and beach surveys are repeatedly finding plastic bottles topping the list of waste pollution on our shores.

Networks of drinking fountains like Glasgow Central station’s water hub will help slash the number of throwaway plastic bottles we use and protect marine life from plastic pollution. We look forward to seeing the rest of the UK’s train stations and airports following suit as it’s such a simple way to make a huge difference.”