The new Grimsby service currently includes a weekly automotive shipment from Europe, using vessels that can carry up to 750 vehicles. Upon arrival, these vehicles are then transported through the GEFCO network to its Regional Distribution Centre in Sandtoft, South Yorkshire.

To launch GEFCO's activity at Grimsby, the port owned and operated by Associated British Ports (ABP) - saw some iconic vehicles passing through in the shape of the well-recognised London Taxi. Bound for Valencia, on the Eastern coast of Spain, these Taxis were part of an important delivery for customer LTI (London Taxis International).

The vehicles were collected from LTI's Coventry factory by GEFCO transporter and delivered to the port where they were loaded onto a vessel bound for the Belgian Port of Zeebrugge. Here they were loaded on to another GEFCO vehicle and driven to Valencia.

LTI's Overseas Operations Coordinator Nigel Walters said:  "This was a very important shipment for LTI Vehicles as these were the first model TX4 London Taxis to be delivered into Spain.  Therefore it was vital that we entrusted the vehicles to a company that could not only offer a timely delivery but also ensure that the shipment would arrive in the same condition as it left us.  GEFCO's experience made them the obvious choice for LTI and the smile on our customer's face when the vehicles arrived in Valencia totally justified our decision."

Commenting on the new service from Grimsby and the LTI shipment, Howard Nash, Automotive Logistics Director at GEFCO said: "We are delighted to start new operations at the Port of Grimsby. It's an important strategic location for the UK, and will offer our new and existing customers further flexibility for shipments from Europe and beyond."

He added: "Our multimodal offering means that the LTI vehicles can be serving European cities within a matter of days via effective transportation from their home in the UK to destinations on the continent. We are very proud to be working with such an iconic brand, contributing to its success in the UK and further afield."

ABP Port Director John Fitzgerald said: "As Northern Britain's largest vehicle-handling port, we are used to seeing a wide variety of cars being imported and exported.  It is not so often, however, that we handle a shipload of London taxis. We are extremely pleased that GEFCO has decided to operate their new service from Grimsby, and we look forward to working with them to develop their business in the future."