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Electric vehicles become practical option
Page 74
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ELECTRIC VEHICLES have come a long way in a short time, evolving from a novelty to be used by the more experimental operator, to a serious alternative to the traditional van. As customers are putting more pressure on operators to become more environmentally aware, running zero-emission vehicles, particularly in urban environments has become a far more attractive, and just as importantly, practical option.
CV Operator Show attendee Scottish based Allied Electric has been producing Peugeotbased EVs for a number of years now and its latest generation of vehicles aims to provide operators with an efficient and usable vehicle to run in towns and cities.
Two examples will be on display at the CV Operator Show, the 3.5-tome GVW eBoxer is joined by the medium sized eExpert, with both vehicles boasting a competitive 100 mile range and a top speed of 70mph. Charging is via a three-phase electricity facility or a household power supply, ideal for smaller businesses.
The company is a key supplier to the Department for Transport's Low Carbon Vehicle Procurement Programme, and is also developing and building 50 electric vehicles for use in Glasgow through a second project led by the government's Technology Strategy Board.
Allied Electric's corporate sales manager Steve Harris, says: "The Commercial Vehicle Operators Show is a fantastic opportunity for Allied to show how fast our EV range is expanding and to communicate the key benefits of an electric fleet directly to transport managers."
Another EV manufacturer set to show off its latest technology is North-East based Smith Electric Vehicles, who will be celebrating 90 years of producing low carbon commercial vehicles, complete with 400m square stand.
It is also the third birthday of the Smith Edison electric van. Launched at the CV Show in 2007 in collaboration with Ford of Europe, the Smith Edison has a range of up to 100 miles and a top speed of 50mph. Designed for return-to-base, urban operations, the lithiumion batteries can now be fast-charged from flat to full in as little as three hours.
Smith supplies the Edison on a range of Transit chassis, including 35f and 4.6t medium and high roof panel van; and a 3.5t and 4.6t chassis cab, which can be fitted with a variety of bodies such as box, refrigerated, tipper and dropside. Additionally, Smith produces an electric minibus, with various seat configurations.
Delivery To give an indication of Smith's success Sainsbury's Online is expanding its EV fleet with an additional 51 Smith Edison vehicles for its online shopping delivery service. This will take Sainsbury's total to 71 EVs, creating the world's largest fleet of electric vans. Furthermore, Edison is in use with a wide range of public and private sector fleets, including Royal Mail, TNT Western Power, Sita, Serco and the Government Car & Despatch Agency.
At the CV Operator Show, the Tyne & Wear-based company will also exhibit a Smith Newton, the world's largest road-going electric truck Newton has a range of up to 120 miles on a full charge and a top speed of 50mph. A full battery recharge takes 6-8 hours. Newton is available in GVW configurations of 75t, 10t and 12t and is in use with fleets including TNT, DHL, Balfour Beatty and TK Maxx.