The City of Indianapolis will deploy the largest municipal fleet of electric vehicles (EVs) in the US by early 2016, reducing the country’s independence on oil and saving American taxpayers millions of dollars. The project is being conducted under a new programme detailed by Mayor Ballard and in partnership with Vision Fleet.
Indianapolis City will upgrade 425 non-police pursuit sedans to plug-in hybrid and pure EVs, cutting the size of the fleet by 100 vehicles and saving $8.7 million over ten years.
“This is a landmark step in revitalizing our aging fleet and replacing expensive internal combustion engine vehicles with cutting-edge EV technology, all while reducing our dependence on oil and saving Indianapolis taxpayers thousands in fuel costs each year” said Mayor Ballard. “America’s dependence on oil ties our national and economic security to a highly-unpredictable, cartel-influenced global oil market. Diversifying the types of vehicles and fuels available to our drivers offers our city protection from often-volatile oil prices and betterprepares us for the future.”
Vision Fleet CEO Michael Brylawski added that Freedom Fleet will have enormous impacts on fuel consumption and fleet service costs.
In partnership with the city municipality, Vision Fleet has developed an innovative financing structure that bundles together all the expenses of purchasing, fuelling and maintaining the EVs into a guaranteed rate that is lower cost than Indianapolis gasoline sedans. Additionally, Vision Fleet will utilise its comprehensive suite of technology, data analytics and operational support designed specifically for reducing the cost of ownership of alternatively fuelled vehicles. This should help to unlock maximum savings for the city.
The new fleet will include 100 percent electric models, such as the Nissan LEAF, as well as plug-in hybrid models like the Chevrolet Volt and the Ford Fusion Energi, which offer an extended range. The cars will be distributed throughout the fleet based on the needs of city fleet drivers and their departments, to be branded the “Freedom Fleet”. The city will replace 100 vehicles by the end of 2014 and 425 vehicles by the beginning of 2016. This in turn will save taxpayers around $9,000 per year over the next decade including purchase, fuel maintenance and insurance.
Indianapolis became the first city in the US to pledge to convert its city fleet to post-oil technology. Mayor Ballard signed an Executive Order in 2012 which mandates the change by 2025. A year later, the World Electric Vehicle Association awarded Mr Ballard its E-Visonary Award for his leadership in promoting EVs.
“The United States spends up to $83 billion annually on safeguarding global oil supply, putting American lives at risk and limiting our ability to conduct effective foreign policy” said Marine Corps General James T. Conway (ret.), speaking at the launch event. “I commend Indianapolis and Mayor Ballard for their forward-looking leadership that will save taxpayers money, reduce the city’s dependence on oil, and contribute to the overall improvement of our nation’s energy security. This is a model for cities across the country, and one I hope will proliferate in the coming months and years.”
Vision Fleet is a full-service accelerator of large-scale alternative fuel vehicle (AFV) adoption in
America’s fleets. The company accomplishes this through its innovative “Clean Miles Solution,” which combines financing innovations from the solar and energy efficiency markets (Vision Fleet Capital) with comprehensive technological capabilities (Vision Fleet iQ) and operational support (Vision Fleet Assist) that are designed specifically for alternative fuel vehicles.
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