Electric pool cars added to West Sussex Council fleet

West Sussex County Council has added four electric Renault ZOEs to be used as pool cars, helping the council tackle grey fleet car use by offering staff an alternative to using their own vehicles.

Already, the vehicles are proving popular and are booked out everyday. Between them, the vehicles will complete several thousand journeys per year, allowing users to travel from council HQ to points as far afield as Crawley and Shoreham and back on a single charge.

Loretta Haddow, Team Leader – Fleet Resource and Support, at West Sussex County Council, said: “We have had electric vehicles on trial and extended demos before and must have looked at every model out there but they have never been quite right for us.

“But the latest ZOE was the game changer for us and the extended range made it a viable option for the first time.

“We are really pleased that the ZOE is able to get across the county and back and we wanted to give everyone who’s going to take one of these cars the confidence to know that wherever they’re going to go they’re going to get back again.

“Since going into service we’ve been really impressed with how easy and relaxing they are to drive. The team love them. They’re really popular.”

Haddow added: “While range and emissions were the biggest factors for us, as a public sector organisation we still have to present a compelling business case before adding new vehicles to our fleet. In this case, the ZOE ticked all the boxes in terms of whole life costs.”

Ben Fletcher, Head of Z.E., Renault UK said: “We are delighted to have supplied four Renault ZOE to West Sussex County Council. The ZOE provides low running costs with no emissions as well as a relaxing environment. This is proof of another public sector body recognising the business and environmental benefits of adopting the Renault ZOE.”

The Renault ZOE’s Z.E 40 battery provides a 174-mile range.