Fleets on the Electric Journey - GREENFLEET whitepaper

Fleets on the

electrIc Journey GreenFleet research into fleet EV adoption, in partnership with E.ON.

The survey The government has made it clear that it sees electric vehicles as the main way of reducing carbon emissions from road transport and improving air quality. The Road to Zero strategy states that the UK government wants 'one of the best electric vehicle infrastructure networks in the world' and unveiled targets for at least fifty per cent of new car sales to be ultra low emission by 2030, and forty per cent of new vans.

As huge purchasers of vehicles, the fleet sector has a major role to play in achieving these ambitions.

Indeed, company cars and fleets are mentioned in the strategy, with a statement saying that the government is 'taking steps to accelerate the adoption of fuelefficient motoring by company car drivers and businesses operating fleets', mainly through providing grants and tax incentives.

So, what does the current picture look like with regards to electric vehicle ownership in businesses?

We surveyed our readers, spanning large and small organisations in both the public and private sector, to see how many are already of the electric vehicle journey, what barriers are preventing others from going electric, and what the future holds.

Positively, sixty-eight per cent of respondents already have some form of plug-in vehicles in their fleet (either full electric or hybrid), and encouragingly, over ninety per cent of respondents said they are actively assessing electric vehicles as viable options.

Unsurprisingly, those not actively looking at electric vehicles cite range as the reason, even though the average distance travelled of survey respondents is well within the capability of an EV.

Who we asked 108 fleet and transport managers responded to the survey, with sixty-two per cent acting as the decision makers and 32.4 per cent key influencers in vehicle procurement. Sixty-six per cent of respondents were from private sector organisations and thirty-four per cent from the public sector. The largest fleet size was over 5,000 vehicles while the smallest was a single EV. The average fleet size meanwhile was 333, and most fleets had a mix of different types of vehicles.

Respondents managed nearly 36,000 vehicles in total within their fleet, of which 20,000 are vans.

No. of BEVs and PHEVs on fleets

Electric fleets: the current picture Sixty-eight per cent of fleet and transport managers that responded to the survey currently have electric vehicles on their fleet. Of those, 64.8 per cent have battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and 52.8 per cent have hybrids, although the total number of hybrids (1,821) exceeds the battery electric vehicles (1,342).

1,821 Plug In Hybrid Vehicles (PHEV) 1,342 Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV)

Encouragingly, 90.7 per cent of respondents said they are actively assessing electric vehicles as viable options.

No

9% Fleet & transport managers actively looking at electric vehicles

Yes

91%

When questioned about the benefits of electric vehicles, the majority (49.1 per cent) stated a reduction in CO2 emissions. The bottom line features high on the benefit list, with 46.3 per cent citing that EVs are cheaper to run and 45.4 per cent saying they cost less to maintain. 40.7 per cent said tax reductions and incentives are a major draw, while compliance with Clean Air Zones and other government legislation is less of a deciding-factor, with 26.9 per cent citing this as a benefit.

Benefits of electric vehicles Easy home charging

24

Adhering to Government legislation

29

Tax savings and incentives

44 49

Cheaper to maintain

50

Cheaper to run

Number of people

53

Reducing C02 emissions

Infrastructure issues The limited number of publicly available charge points is given as the main reason that fleets haven’t switched to electric vehicles, with 53.7 per cent of respondents giving this as a reason, and fifty-five per cent believing a good public charging infrastructure is vital for the future of electric vehicles.

Given the government’s commitment to creating one of the best infrastructure networks in the world, the public charging network will grow. As part of the work to achieve this, the government wants charge points to be installed in newly built homes and included in new lampposts, and it is providing £400 million funding for companies that produce and install charge points to

accelerate the roll-out of more charging facilities.

There are also grants for home and work chargers.

What’s more, the government has acknowledged that the public infrastructure is not always accessible or easy to use, with different network operators requiring different access and payment methods, and points not being interoperable. The Automated and Electric Vehicles Bill, which became law in July 2018, aims to change this. The Bill will also make it possible to require large fuel retailers to offer electric charging, which is good news for the thirty-one per cent that said that forecourt charging is more important than on-street charging.

Barriers to EV adoption Not enough public charge points EVs don’t go far enough on a single charge EVs take too long to charge EVs are too expensive Not enough variety of EVs in the market Lead time for ordering EVs too long

58 54 40 36 38 24

Number of people

The range of EVs A similar concern for fleet managers is range - how far an electric vehicle can go before needing to be charged, which is cited by fifty per cent of respondents. However, battery technology is advancing, which will improve range. The new Renault Zoe is said to be capable of 186-miles on a single charge and the Nissan LEAF’s quoted range is 168 miles.

Thirty-seven per cent meanwhile said that electric vehicles take too long to charge.

Given that the average distance travelled by survey respondents was 106 miles, this is well within the capacity of an electric vehicle, suggesting that perhaps fleet managers do not know how far modern EVs can travel or are mistrustful that they will get that range in the real world.

Charging: where’s critical?

With many fleets undertaking back-to-base routes, workplace and home charging can be enough to make EVs viable.

106

Survey respondents had 716 workplace charging stations installed between them, ranging from rapid chargers, 6amp charging, 7kw charging, 240v, 22kw, 50kw and Solar charging.

miles

average distance traveled

Ninety-three per cent either agreed or strongly agreed that workplace charging is vital for the future success of electric vehicles.

Ninety-eight per cent meanwhile either agree or strongly agree that home charging is critical.

Thirty-five per cent of those asked did not feel that there are enough electric vehicles to choose from and thirty-three per cent said they were too expensive to buy. This will change however, with most major manufacturers committing to offer plug-in vehicles in the near future. And the more EVs that come on the market, the cheaper they will become.

However only twelve per cent said that home and workplace charging are more important than a public charging network.

Forty-eight per cent agree that a workplace or home charging unit should be provided with each electric vehicle sale, with thirty-three per cent strongly agreeing.

A home or workplace charging unit should be provided with each electric or plug in vehicle sales?

Disagree Undecided

33.3%

7.4%

Strongly agree

11.2%

48.1%

Agree

Government and industry support The government is throwing its weight behind the adoption of electric vehicles, with many bold ambitions and multimillion pound investments to improve the infrastructure and support the purchase of EVs. But only 27.8 per cent believe that the Road to Zero strategy addresses the challenges to adopting to electric vehicles, suggesting that more can be done to win fleet confidence.

What’s more, it appears that the government and indeed industry could provide more to support fleets in the uptake of zero-emission vehicles; 75.9 per cent said they need more guidance from government and industry to determine if electric vehicles are right for their organisation.

75.9 per cent need more guidance from government on electric vehicles

90.7 per cent are actively assessing electric vehicles as viable options