New trial reveals increased EV satisfaction

Drivers taking part in the UK's Ultra Low Carbon demonstration trial give electric vehicles the thumbs up, says a new report produced by Cenex and Oxford Brookes University.

After 349 vehicles covered over 1.5 million miles and completed 270,000 separate journeys, the analysis reveals that drivers were blown away by their performance and adapted almost immediately to driving and charging the vehicles.

Cenex, the UK's first Centre of Excellence for low carbon vehicle technologies, has announced the results of the Office for Low Emissions Vehicles (OLEV) and the Technology Strategy Boards (TSB) ultra-Low Carbon Vehicle (ULCV) demonstrator programme.

The report, entitled 'Assessing the viability of EVs in daily life', analyses the experiences of 349 drivers who took part in the study that aimed to give a robust account of the usage patterns and perceptions towards EVs. The vehicle and driver information were collected and analysed by Cenex and Oxford Brookes University.

Over the duration of the study, more than 1.5 million miles were driven and over 51,000 charging events were recorded from the vehicles. Information from the vehicles and the drivers were brought together to give a robust and thorough account of the usage patterns and perceptions towards EVs during the first 12 months of vehicle deployment.

The average trip length achieved in the EVs was 5.1 miles and the average daily mileage was 21.4 miles. Little range anxiety was experienced during the trial because the vast majority of drivers kept comfortably within the capable range of EVs.

75% of daily use consumed less than 50% of the battery capacity. Finally, EVs were seen as a viable mobility option and 80% of trial participants could imagine replacing their internal combustion engine with an EV and 50% intended to do so. 72% of trial drivers say that an EV would be sufficient for their daily needs, and 91% of participants said that they would recommend EVs.

Phil Smith, Chairman of the Technology Strategy Board commented, "The UK is committed to a low carbon economy and transport is a key area where change will be needed. This study shows how people will welcome and readily adapt to well-thought-out and effective innovation in this area."

To view more about the study please click here