Video: AT Local rideshare hailed “world first”

An on-demand electric vehicle rideshare service called AT Local has been launched by Auckland Transport (AT) which says it’s among the first of its kind in the world.

The app-based service is being trialled at Devonport for a year, with three Hyundai Ioniq cars and three LDV EV80 vans transporting people to and from ferry terminals at Bayswater, Stanley Bay and Devonport.

About 70 people were using the service after it started on November 19, before it was even officially announced on November 23.

Designed to help people get to public transport easily, AT Local also aims to ease congestion and parking.

Passengers download the AT Local app and can book trips for up to six people at a time or for up to 30 days in advance. The seven-seater vans also have wheelchair access options and the electric cars can carry up to four passengers at once.

The app allows a ride to be arranged even immediately and provides arrival times and other information, along with the ability to communicate directly with the driver.

The EVs operate within a 3km radius of the Devonport ferry terminal and a ride costs $2.50 ($3 from February 1, 2019), but AT Hop cards and public transport fare concessions don’t apply to the new service.

The AT Local service is understood to cost more than $1 million for the year – including vehicle purchase and fitout costs, with some revenue expected from fares.

Up to $1 million of operational funding comes from the NZ Transport Agency for the project while AT paid around $300,000 for the vans and their fitouts. The vans cost about $70,000 each and the fitout, which included making them wheelchair accessible and installing the driver setup, cost about $30,000 per vehicle.

The EVs are charged up at a Glenfield depot, usually overnight, with drivers and vehicles swapped during shift breaks.

The cars and vans have about a 180km range, although that will be better determined during the trial with passengers, luggage, air conditioning/heating and other factors taken into account.

Russell Turnbull of Go Bus says conventional vehicles were trialled in Queenstown to see how the AT Local rideshare service would work. “People felt very good about the service, particularly as ridesharing is very environmentally friendly and can help reduce their carbon footprint,” he says.

The app, “using all the smarts in a smartphone”, can keep people and drivers instantly updated, Turnbull adds.

Devonport-Takapuna Local Board members George Wood, Grant Gillon and Jan O’Connor took an EV van ride during the November 23 launch – disembarking at a café between ferry terminals (yes, you can do that if you wish).

AT Local operates 5.40am to 9.20pm Monday to Friday, 8.25am to 6.50pm Saturday and 8.25am to 6.20pm Sundays and public holidays.