The City of London’s order for a battery-powered eBoxer from Allied Electric is one of the first vehicles commissioned under a new incentive programme funded by the Department for Transport. The Department’s Low Carbon Vehicle Procurement Programme (LCVPP) aims to encourage public fleets to move to low carbon vehicles.

The programme, which is managed for the Office for Low Emission Vehicles by Cenex, is providing £20m of funding to selected public sector partners to help towards the purchase of low carbon vehicles. Powered by lithium-ion battery technology, Allied Electric’s eBoxer has a range of over 100 miles and can be recharged in six to eight hours. The vehicle produces zero emissions when in operation.

The Peugeot eBoxer will be used by City of London for their library operations based at the Barbican Library, situated in the heart of the city. Applications will include
transporting books, furniture, and other materials between the city's libraries and providing a home delivery library service to local residents.

Transport secretary, Andrew Adonis said: "This project is an excellent example of the way that the UK is playing a leading role in developing and demonstrating low carbon vehicle technology. It's good news that the eBoxer will be on the road soon."

John Lake, head librarian at Barbican Library, comments: “The purchase of an all-electric vehicle is an important step in providing environmentally friendly services within the city and has been carefully considered as part of the City of London's Transport Coordination Group's planning process.”

Allied Electric’s managing director, Paul Nelson, adds: “Technology has advanced rapidly over the past few years and all-electric vehicles now offer a practical, zero-emissions alternative, especially for congested city centre environments.”

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