Electric lorries: Saviour of the city

The world’s cities are crying out for the potential environmental benefits of electric lorries. Research by King's College in 2014 found nitrogen dioxide levels on London’s Oxford Street to be the worst on Earth – a shocking revelation that is prompting new restrictions on the type of vehicles permitted to enter the city.

Dr David Carslaw, Environmental Research Group, was quoted in relation to air pollution levels on Oxford Street. He said: ‘To my knowledge this [level] is the highest in the world in terms of both hourly and annual mean. NO2 concentrations [in Oxford Street] are as high as they have ever been in the long history of air pollution.’

Diesels emit the bulk of emissions that endanger health, causing asthma, chronic bronchitis, heart disease and cancer, and such vehicles will from 2020 have to meet the strict Euro 6 emissions rating if they are to escape a proposed daily 24-hour toll on top of the congestion charge. Most diesel cars have yet to meet Euro 6.

There had been high hopes for Modec, a company that manufactured electric lorries with a useful payload of 2.5 tons, but despite orders from a series of high-profile companies it went into administration  in 2011 following poor sales. It was unique because it was an electric commercial vehicle from the ground up – unlike current vans such as the e-NV200 from Nissan, which is a converted internal combustion engine model.
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A barrier to electric vehicle ownership, particularly for commercial users, has been price, but Charge claims to have used ultra-lightweight composite materials and custom-built hardware, to reduce operating costs by more than 50% when compared to conventional diesel vehicles.

The company plans a range of electric lorries from 2 to 20 tons with a range of 100 miles, which can be increased to 500 miles using an auxiliary motor.

Like a modern-day Ford Model T, a simple design aids mass production. One person can assemble two entire Charge lorries each day.

The ethical choice

The ETA was established in 1990 as an ethical provider of green, reliable travel services. Over 30 years on, we continue to offer cycle insurance , breakdown cover and mobility scooter insurance while putting concern for the environment at the heart of all we do.

The Good Shopping Guide judges us to be the UK’s most ethical provider.

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