Europcar employs electric ‘runner’ cars and bikes to cut emissions

Europcar Mobility Group UK is using electric vehicles (EVs) and bikes to cut its emissions when collecting and delivering vehicles.

A fleet of electric Ora Funky Cats are now used by the company’s ‘hikers’ who take vehicles to customers and collect them at the end of the rental.

These complement electric bikes that were first introduced to Europcar locations in 2022.

As a result, for the stations that have access to electric runner vehicles, EV miles account for 39% of all mileage.

From January 2022 to the end of October 2023, Europcar has completed 362,377 EV miles with runner vehicles equating to 92 tonnes of CO2 saved.

Mark Newberry, commercial director and sustainability spokesperson at Europcar Mobility Group UK, said: “By delivering vehicles to customers – and collecting them at the end of the rental – we are reducing the journeys they need to make, as well as enhancing business productivity.

“It is, however, important that we find ways to reduce the environmental impact of this service.

“The addition of electric vehicles for more of our locations for ‘hikers’ delivering and collecting customer vehicles is key to achieving this goal.”

He explained that the combination of the Ora Funky Cats and electric bikes means it can get its ‘hikers’ back to its stations after a vehicle drop-off, and to a customer for collection at the end of a rental without adding to the carbon footprint.

“For the stations where electric vehicles are being used, 39% of delivery and collection miles are now electric and we expect this to increase exponentially over the coming months,” he added.

By year end, 12% of the Europcar UK fleet will be fully electric or plug-in hybrid.