Features
As the number of fully electric vehicles on UK roads passes the one million milestone, Giles Benbow, Senior Manager of Business and Partnership Development at Mer UK takes a look at the less explored area of electrifying commercial and heavy goods vehicles, and the main challenges that local authority fleet managers need to overcome.
When it comes to discussions about the transition to electric transport, vans and lorries have tended to be a bit overlooked. It’s all been about cars and private transport, but when you examine the drivers behind the move to EV – the need for cleaner air, less emissions, and less reliance on fossil fuels – electrifying commercial vehicles is right up there in terms of the benefits it will deliver. So, why the hesitance in transitioning commercial vehicles to electricity? There is no getting away from the fact that there are challenges, but it is by no means impossible.
Westminster City Council and Veolia have launched the UK’s largest electric refuse collection fleet. LAPV visited the local authority’s new depot to find out more.
In July, Westminster City Council and waste management experts Veolia announced the rollout of the largest fleet of electric refuse collection vehicles (RCVs) in the UK. In his remarks at the launch event, held at the council’s new depot near Bermondsey, Pascal Hauret, Managing Director Veolia UK Municipal, told the assembled crowd that the project to deliver the new trucks along with the new fully electric depot was unprecedented. ‘The beauty of this project is that there was no rule book,’ he said. ‘We had to start from scratch. Together we wrote that book and God it’s a really good book.’ He then proceeded, with the help of council leader Adam Hug, to plug in a novelty sized plug while the eighties classic ‘Together in Electric Dreams’ blasted out from nearby speakers.
