The new electric van market has seen a strong improvement in the number of relatively affordable models now available with reasonable range capabilities, according to the BVRLA.
The rental and leasing industry body has published its latest Road to Zero Report, tracking progress made towards car and van market electrification.
Discussing the report at the organisation’s Fleets in Charge conference, its director of policy and public affairs Thomas McLennan explained that the progress seen in the electric van sector was a welcome development, given it has long been more problematic than the electric car market.
He said: “Vans were highlighted as an area where we historically had a number of challenges, and there has been some really great progress here. The number of models which sits in the sort of beyond 200-mile range and below £40,000 price point has a dramatically changed.
“Now, obviously there are a lot which sit outside that [category] and I think that makes it clear there is still work to be done, but when we cast our minds back to those early report cards seven years back, there would have been nothing in that space.
“It’s better for smaller vans than larger, but we really are seeing some strong progress here in the product which is available in the market.”
Despite the progress, the BVRLA’s report states that there are still many issues facing the electric van market, such as demand remaining slow, the cost of the vehicles still relatively high, and issues remaining around a lack of suitable public charging, and high costs of installing private infrastructure.
