Milton Keynes Community Boat design plans unveiled for the first time

The Bedford & Milton Keynes Waterway Trust has revealed a brand new colour scheme for Electra their all-electric community boat.

The boat is under construction currently, and scheduled to be sailing across Milton Keynes this spring.

With the help of Yellowyoyo, a local design company, the boat has a logo and colour scheme ready for the summer boat trips ahead.

Yellowyoyo offered support on the branding scheme free of charge. David Wolfson, lead volunteer on branding, thanked the company, he said: "“It was wonderful to work with such a talented designer who took our initial design thoughts and turned them into something fresh, distinctive and new.”

“Electra will glide almost silently along the Grand Union Canal. We wanted a colour scheme to match the tradition of canal boats with our up-to-date vision. The blue and cream colours match our existing trip boat in Bedford, the John Bunyan. The bright gold electric lightning flash with the green of her bows and stern show off our environmental credentials."

Electra was chosen as the community boat named at the end of January by the Bedford & Milton Keynes Waterway Trust, winning out over 200 other name suggestions. Electra was picked due to its links to electricity and its symbolism, meaning of ‘shining light’.

Amanda Wright, founder director of brand strategy, design & marketing specialists Yellowyoyo, added: “Over the years Yellowyoyo’s clients have varied greatly in scale and across all sectors, from start-ups and SMEs to global companies.

"This, however, is the first time we’ve collaborated on a canal boat project! We were delighted to be asked to help and have very much enjoyed being part of the team to deliver such a novel local scheme.”