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Despite concerns about battery
reliability, durability and costly ownership, the pitfalls associated
with going electric within the light commercial vehicle sector, might no
longer outweigh the long-term benefits, according to EurotaxGlass’s.
The attraction of clean, quiet power
for stop-and-start town deliveries is appealing to some fleets. Helped
by the soaring price of crude oil, the point where the cost of running
electric stacks up against diesel power is fast approaching, explains
George Alexander, Commercial Vehicle Editor at EurotaxGlass’s.
“National and local Government
incentives aim to convert more city-based light commercial vehicles from
diesel to battery power,” he says. “Such programmes offer sizeable
savings for van operators, particularly in London.
“With London’s Low Emission Zone to be
contended with and the congestion charge to be paid, those opting for
zero-emission vans which avoid these headaches are already benefiting
financially. In addition there is no excise duty to pay or MOT test
requirement, with exemption from O licensing for vans exceeding 3.5
tonnes.
“The advice must be to run such a
vehicle on a lease over an extended period in order to get the full
value out of the technology, when put to appropriate urban duties where
the daily round is below 100 miles,” suggests Alexander.
Electric-powered light commercial
vehicles are destined to become a far more common sight on the UK’s city
roads over the coming years, should some of the current projections put
forward by a wide range of environmentalists and manufacturers be
realised.
“Those needing to transport loads over
short distances on congested roads, typically at crawler speeds, might
well discover that the time is right to go electric,” concludes
Alexander.
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