New Zealand-long EV road trip under way

A group of electric vehicles left Cape Reinga yesterday bound for Bluff as part of a drive to improve the New Zealand public’s perception and understanding around the technology.

The Better NZ Trust has organised the ‘Leading the Charge’ road trip and it is taking three fully electric Teslas, two plug-in extended-range BMW i3, and a plug-in Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV across the length of New Zealand.

The road trip will be stopping in towns and cities along the way to demonstrate the vehicles and even take the public for a quick spin in one of the cars.

Many more electric vehicles and bikes are joining on the route say the group’s spokesperson James Cozens.

American electric vehicle activist/advocate Chelsea Sexton, from the documentary ‘Who Killed the Electric Car?’, will also be joining the convoy for part of the ‘Leading the Charge’ road trip

Environmental law specialist Professor Barry Barton says the initiative behind the road trip is to improve perceptions of electric vehicles and address any uncertainty and doubt that New Zealand consumers may have.

According to the Better NZ Trust, electric vehicles offer New Zealand great opportunity to tackle climate change and related problems, but it is a challenge to move to high levels of uptake of electric vehicles (EVs).

“Research also indicates that in addition to consumer awareness, Government policies need to be reviewed to encourage the use of electric vehicles in New Zealand, particularly when transport is a rapidly growing contributor to New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions,” says Barton.