| Light Duty Are electric vehicles By Mattie Gorman, Associate Editor How to determine if these alternatives to conventionally fueled vehicles make sense For fleets looking to reduce their carbon footprint, diversify their “Because the technology allows for flexibility in how electric drive solutions can be applied across different vehicle platforms, manufacturers are able to meet the increasingly diverse operational demands of consumers and businesses,” she adds. “These solutions have been applied in light duty cars and trucks, buses, utility vehicles, medium and heavy duty transportation and mobile equipment, just to name a few electric drive vehicle options, and these are available at a variety of price points.” EVs start to look good when you look at emissions, says Alexander Barton, director of accreditation development, National Association of Fleet Administrators (NAFA) Fleet Management Association (www.nafa.org), a not-for-profit association for professionals who manage fleets. “EVs have zero emissions from the tailpipe and use an electric grid as a power source that is readily available. Sometimes that power source is clean, whether that is produced by solar or wind (power). Sometimes it is produced by coal power plants, so you’d have offsets there.” He says that in terms of fleets, efficiency and time and monetary savings, EVs are a “nice way to go” if the vehicles stay close to their domicile and don’t go any further than 40 miles. Drivers would be able to go about their daily jobs and charge the EVs overnight. Or, if the city offers quick charge stations, vehicles can be charged for an hour or two over a lunch period. TYPES OF EVS There are currently a few different types of EVs available on the market. These include: • Standard electric vehicles (EVs), powered only by one or more electric motors. These receive electricity by plugging into the grid and storing energy in batteries. They consume no petroleum-based fuel while driving and produce no tailpipe emissions. • Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) combine an internal combustion engine (ICE) or other propulsion source with batteries, regenerative braking and an electric motor to provide high fuel economy. They rely on a petroleumbased or alternative fuel for power and are not plugged in to charge. HEV batteries are charged by the ICE or other propulsion source and during regenerative braking. • Plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) derive all or part of their power from electricity supplied by the electric grid. They include EVs and PHEVs (plug-in hybrid electric vehicles). PHEVs, which use batteries to power an electric motor, plug into the grid to charge and use a petroleum-based or alternative fuel to power an ICE or other propulsion source. An important consideration is understanding how much charging a vehicle will need and what electricity costs will be. Photo from iStock Electric vehicles (EVs) offer several advantages over vehicles with internal combustion engines. EVs are energy efficient and environmentally friendly, plus offer some performance benefits as electric motors provide quiet, smooth operation. Photo courtesy of FedEx vehicles and save money, electric vehicles (EVs) can be a viable alternative to conventionally fueled vehicles. “Electric drive vehicles provide documented benefits in emissions reduction and performance,” says Genevieve Cullen, president, Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA). The EDTA (www.electricdrive.org) is the cross-industry trade association which promotes the advancement of electric drive technology and electrified transportation. To learn more about the effect of transportation on greenhouse gas emissions, visit: www.VehicleServicePros.com/12072792 24 FLEET MAINTENANCE ❚ APRIL 2016 ❚ VehicleServicePros.com
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