Jonathan Jenkins from Motability Operations highlighted the vital role of local authorities in the transition to electric vehicles (EV).
Speaking during the afternoon session of the Transport + Energy Forum, Jenkins said that local authorities must plan for accessibility from the start – and also stressed the critical part played by collaboration in the transition to EVs.
Jenkins said “collaboration is absolutely critical” and also that “success in the transition isn’t a car nerd or an energy geek. It is about how electric vehicles are easier for those on Motability than an ICE vehicle.”
He also highlighted the importance of moving from commitment to certainty on the EV and associated charging landscape – and how through collaborative approaches and technologies, Motability Operations had enabled such a move.
Motability Operations then showed a video of one of its customers to illustrate this point, and how the drive would have been unable to get around without an EV.
For example it showed how, by being able to de-ice the vehicle in advance through a smartphone and having temperature control, had enabled the driver to leave his house.
“The statistic for me that really matters,” explained Jenkins, “is that Motability allows 2+ additional working days due to the scheme. That’s adding billions in value to the economy.”
Jenkins also said that a lot of customers had issues with charging at home, and that the development of cross-pavement solutions was “exciting” – and he added that around 200,000 drivers would benefit from the application of such technologies.
He highlighted that 69% of Motability users worry about household finances, 54% think that EVs are too expensive, and one in four EV drivers on Motability don’t trust or use public charging infrastructure.
“These issues and challenges are important not just for Motability customers, but will also be replicated in the wider EV transition,” he added.
He concluded by discussing the 85,000 charge points installed with partner Ohme, and that it was now important “to start using these assets flexibly” – for which, “collaboration is therefore absolutely vital”.
This included working and collaborating with local councils, and Jenkins spoke about his own conversation he had with Newport Council earlier in the T+E Forum, during a special session about opening up dialogue amongst delegates with Cenex.
“Local authorities are the enablers of the EV charging transition,” he said.
