Businesses in Bristol are being offered free trials of electric vehicles (EVs) ahead of the introduction of the city’s Clean Air Zone (CAZ) later this year.
Bristol City Council has launched a scheme allowing companies, charities and voluntary organisations to try out an electric car or van for a period of two months, as part of efforts to reduce emissions and improve air quality in the city.
The £3.2m initiative is fully funded by National Highways and will run for two years. The rental fleet will include a choice of different sized electric vans, taxis and cars suitable for smaller businesses.
Bristol City Council has said the CAZ will come into force in late Summer 2022, with older and more polluting vehicles set to pay to enter the centre of the city.
Smaller vehicles, such as private diesel and petrol cars will be charged £9 for entering the zone, while larger vehicles such as lorries and HGVs are set for higher charges of £100 per day.
Bristol City Council previously said that under the plans nearly three-quarters of vehicles (71%) travelling into the zone are “already compliant” and will not be charged for entering.
The plans received formal approval from central Government in November last year, with £42m available for greener transport initiatives in the city, including electric bike loans, free bus tickets, and upgrades to cleaner vehicles.
Mayor of Bristol Marvin Rees said more than 300 organisations had already signed up for more information.
Mr Rees said: “Not only are electric vehicles better for the environment, they’re also cheaper to run and maintain than traditional diesel and petrol vehicles.
“Borrowing one of our electric vehicles over a longer period of time gives drivers the chance to see for themselves how the technology supporting electric vehicles has advanced and become more accessible.”
Mr Rees acknowledged it was a “big challenge” for organisations running larger vehicles to make the switch to electric, in terms of cost, driving distances and driver training.
He added that the free hire scheme would help those organisations to investigate the possibility without committing “huge funds” up front.
Bristol Veg Box is one of the first businesses to loan one of the vehicles. The company’s director Andrew Wilkinson said it would be assessing how well an electric van would hold up to its heavy loads and multi-drop deliveries.
Out of Hand, a local design, print and targeted marketing solutions agency in Bristol will also be taking one of the electric vehicles on loan.
Nigel Muntz, commercial director at Out of Hand, said: “We have been exploring electric van options to upgrade our fleet but it’s not an easy decision to make when you have several vehicles to maintain and the market is rapidly developing new models.
“We’ve always relied on diesel vans so getting expert help and advice on electric vehicle options from the team at the council has been really helpful.”
Bristol City Council said limited additional funding would be made available to pay for charge points for the scheme’s early participants who commit to buying at least one EV vehicle after their loan ends.
Andrew Page-Dove, South West regional director for National Highways, added: “We’re working with councils across the country to encourage businesses to make the switch to electric vehicles and we expect many more to start using electric vehicles when they experience the savings possible.”
The first CAZ outside of London was launched in Bath last year.
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