Electric car fleet powers force savings

West Midlands Police is to continue using electric cars after they were found to save money and be friendlier to the environment.

The lease on 30 British-built electric vehicles is being renewed after they saved £68,000 in fuel costs and hundreds of tonnes of emissions.

The environmentally-friendly Nissan Leaf cars are being replaced with a newer model.

The cars are used to transport officers to set appointments with members of the public rather than respond to 999 emergencies.

Since 2013, the existing fleet has covered 700,000 miles, saved £68,000 in fuel costs and saved around 200 tonnes of CO2 emissions;

The vehicles are charged using 32 points at 13 different locations across the West Midlands force area.

West Midlands police and crime commissioner David Jamieson said: “Anything that helps us save money in the current climate is most welcome and I am pleased to approve this new lease.

“As well as being greener, the Nissan Leaf costs a fraction of the cost per mile to run compared to a diesel or petrol car.

“They have the added bonus of being British built in Sunderland.”

Gloucestershire Constabulary has just taken delivery of seven electric vehicles. Three will be ‘marked’ cars for use in urban areas, while the other four will be unmarked for use in other operations.

Karl Anders, national electric vehicle manager at Nissan Motor (GB), said “more and more local authorities and public sector organisations across the UK were turning to electric vehicles to meet their fleet needs”.