Five steps to improve EVs and save Australians billions

After more than 10,000km on the road with an electric ute and, talking to hundreds of Australians in more than 20 communities across three states, Solar Citizens has released a new report – Five Recommendations for Accelerating Clean Transport in Regional Australia.

The report was developed as part of the Electric Ute Roadshow which had its final stop in Sydney on Friday August 18.

The report makes five recommendations.

These include implementing a strong mandatory Fuel Efficiency Standard to unblock EV supply for Australians, building a resilient charging infrastructure and prioritising regional towns for that, implementing solar-shaded roofs in carparks and on charging stations to increase supply of clean energy for EV charging, and removing barriers to vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology – such as vehicle-to-load (V2L), vehicle-to-home (V2H) and vehicle-to-grid (V2G).

 The electric ute driver, Ballarat resident Ben Lever, has gone from petrol-head to one of Australia’s fiercest clean transport advocates.

He reckons he had a ball travelling from Ballarat to Brisbane in one of Australia’s first electric utes – the LDV eT60.

“I’m lucky enough to have captained one of the first commercially available electric utes on a six month trip through regional Australia,” says Lever.

“I discovered that EVs are great to drive. The electric ute I’ve been driving (the LDV eT60) is incredibly smooth and quick off the line, but I’ve been even more impressed by the cost savings.”

When Lever reaches his final roadshow stop in Sydney this Friday, he’ll be joined by Western Sydney “sparky” Jacob Kennedy who estimates an electric ute would save him about $250 a week in fuel costs. Plus, electrifying Australia will bring many jobs to electricians like him.

The Electric Ute Roadshow has revealed the huge savings that a strong mandatory Fuel Efficiency Standard could bring.

Solar Citizens estimates that could see $11 billion savings Australia-wide in the first five years, with $4 billion of this in regional areas alone in the first five years and $3.4 billion for New South Wales in the first five years.

Click here for more information on Solar Citizens.

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