Buzz stops: UK hopes to see more bee friendly bus stops

Leicester already has 30 of these bus stops!

Bees, butterflies and other pollinators will be pleased to hear more and more 'bee bus stops' are set to pop up around the UK this year.

Pollinators are really important for our environment.

They fly from plant to plant, gathering pollen, which is vital to help crops and native wild flowers reproduce.

But they face growing challenges from things like pollution, climate change and habitat loss.

That's what the bee bus stops are hoping to help change!

Bus stop roofs = mini gardens

The roofs of the bus shelters, like this one in Brighton, are covered in plants our bees like to pollinate.

Bee bus shelters were first introduced in Utrecht in the Netherlands, where there are now over 300 of them.

Bus stop roofs are transformed into mini gardens full of plants and native wild flowers that pollinators love.

The idea is that in built up areas they provide a place for insects to thrive which can help them pollinate elsewhere, leading to more plant life growing, which can help with things like pollution.

We've already got a few across the UK and it's hoped by the end of the year, the amount will have doubled.

If you cannot see the interactivity on this page, click here.

Special roof

Bees help to provide a lot of the food you eat by flying around and pollinating plants

The roofs have to be specially designed because the soil can get really heavy when it's full of water.

To reduce the amount of waste produced from the project, Clear Channel - the company in charge of looking after these special bus stops - is only installing them when a bus stop needs replacing.

There are already lots across Europe, with some being put up in France and Belgium later this year.

It's hoped the UK will eventually have at least 1,000 of them.