Zenith employees are taking part in a trial to assess the real world viability of electric vehicles for fleets.  The company has two Zenith-branded Nissan Leaf models, one of which employees can drive on short, local trips and another that can be booked for longer journeys and for employees to use for up to a week at a time.

Employees will be reporting on their experiences on a company blog in order to fully explore the viability of electric vehicles in a real and practical environment.  After each period of use, employees will be asked to write about and score their experiences of using an electric vehicle against criteria including the range, availability of charging stations, charging times, cost savings and the overall driving experience.  Emissions and fuel costs saved by using the vehicles will also be analysed. The trial is part of Zenith’s Corporate Social and Responsibility policy and, as well as helping them assess the feasibility of the vehicles, it will help Zenith to raise awareness in the local community of the need to reduce emissions.

Zenith is installing a charging point at the company’s head office in Leeds to support the trial and any other vehicles run by staff or visitors in the future.

Tim Buchan, Zenith’s chief executive officer, commented:  “There has been a lot of debate about the practicalities of running electric vehicles and their cost implications. We felt that the time was right to take a closer look and get some genuine feedback from drivers using the electric cars as part of their business and everyday driving. The results will help us advise our customers as whether electric vehicles are a suitable option for their fleets and for us to provide feedback to manufacturers on our findings.”

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