Shopping for electric vehicles is as close as fleet managers and executives will get to the famous feeling we had as kids in the candy store. There are hundreds of delicious options to choose from, each with its unique flavor and specialty. Tesla has gone far enough even to add features allowing their cars to dance. But with all the hype around electric vehicles, how do we cut through the fluff and find out which vehicle is truly best for us?
Your new electric vehicle will need the optimal combination of battery size, seating capacity, and charging infrastructure to ensure a seamless transition in operation. This is the easy part. By looking at your current operation, you can find all the metrics you need to guide your decision.
We have identified four factors that will help you find, or even build the perfect vehicle for your fleet.
1. Fleet Goals
Looking at your current fleet, where do you want to see improvement? Vehicle performance? Charging time? Range? Software? One might think it’s as easy as swapping out their combustion engine vehicles for clean electric shuttles but there’s more to consider when switching.
Electric vehicles require ample charging time within the operation, which may affect the way your fleet operates. This could mean either increasing the number of vehicles in your fleet or making the decision to change your fleet’s structure to fit an EV charging schedule. It’s important to decide if as early as possible in the process if your goal is to keep your current route structure or maintain your current fleet size.
2. Route Requirements
To optimize your fleet by going electric, you must first understand your specific route requirements. These measurements will directly impact your battery and charging needs, the most important factors in your EV decision. Your battery requirements are primarily based upon your route distance, cycle times, and break schedules. But this is infinitely more complicated than just plugging those figures into a battery size calculator. Other uncontrollable factors can significantly affect your vehicle’s efficiency and operational requirements, which leads me to number three on the list.
3. Location
Your fleet’s location is one of the most critical components that will affect your electric vehicle purchase decision. Our customers on the coastline require vehicle bodies that are resistant to salt and moisture in the air. Composite bodies are the ideal option as they are salt and moisture resistant leading to more durability with a lighter shell resulting in higher efficiency. However, aluminum bodies are better suited for dry states and customers looking to keep purchasing costs low.
The temperature of your operational environment is a significant factor as well. Warmer climates that will require an air-conditioned unit to be used during operation suffer a 20% decrease in operational miles that must be considered during planning. Seasons of high temperatures should also be considered for air-conditioning usage. These environmental factors are essential for further determining the needs of your route and your body style.
4. Average Ridership
When it comes to deciding between which style of vehicle, your average ridership will be the most critical factor. This will determine both the type of vehicle you use and the floorplan within the vehicle. Most people immediately start to think of large metro busses to suit their large ridership. But more are surprised when they find that most sizes can be fitted to a more efficient shuttle size.
Shuttles are more budget-friendly than their full-size bus counterparts. Shuttles also allow for more customization within the vehicle, which is essential when considering accommodations. For example, shuttles allow for many combinations of seats, luggage racks, and even wheelchair lifts. Fleets must even understand who their riders are so they can accommodate accordingly
There are a lot of factors that go into selecting the right electric vehicle for your fleet. While the selection process can be overwhelming, the benefits will be too after your conversion, if thought out thoroughly in the planning process. Following these four steps will help make your selection process go as smoothly as possible. Selecting your vehicle is just one of many phases in the full electrification process. Stay tuned to our blog to read more about making your fleet conversion a success.