An all-electric Nissan e-NV200 is joining the fleet of Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council.
The zero-emission van will be used by the local authority's neighbourhood services team on a wide range of community-focused projects.
It's one of the first 100% electric vehicles on the council's 69-strong fleet, which includes everything from small city cars to minibuses and an 18-tonne tanker.
Team members used to operate a standard diesel Vauxhall panel van, but needed a second row of seats to accommodate apprentices and volunteers as well as a large, but not excessive, load area. The council found the five-seat e-NV200 Combi to be the right fit.
Councillor Tony Dicicco, cabinet member for environment, housing and regeneration, said: "The e-NV200 has shown us just how electric vehicles can work for us. From our perspective, the technology has come so far that every time a department has a need for a new vehicle or a lease comes up for renewal, we'll be looking to see if there's a viable electric option."
He added that as well as the council’s responsibility to improve air quality, it was also important to reduce the number of large vehicles on the city’s roads. "The e-NV200 is just the right size for us, giving the team all the room they need to transport people and tools while saving on fuel bills."
Launched last year, the Nissan e-NV200 is available in panel van or five- or seven-seat Combi form. The manufacturer said it costs two pence per mile to operate, can cover 106 miles on a single charge and can be charged from zero to 100% in 30 minutes.
Priced from £13,568 in panel van form (incorporating the government’s Plug-In Van Grant), it offers a 4.2m3 capacity and a 703kg payload.
See Freightinthecity.com's sister website Van Advisor for a full roadtest of the Nissan e-NV200.
