🕒 Article read time: 2 minutes
Open letter sent to the Chancellor from the representatives behind the Zero Emission Van Plan
Following last week’s launch in Parliament of the Van Plan, Logistics UK has signed a joint letter to the Chancellor along with the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA), RECHARGE UK, Association of Fleet Professionals and The EV Café.
The letter noted the essential role that vans play in supporting the UK economy with 3.4 million people (one-in-10 workers) relying on a van to do their job.
“There are three key asks underpinning the Van Plan,” says Logistics UK’s Denise Beedell. “Firstly, to increase fiscal support by refreshing the Plug-in Van Grant and creating new a grant for SMEs. This is central to making new and used ZE vans affordable, especially for small operators and the self-employed.
“Secondly, to improve charging: charge points need to be accessible, affordable and fit-for-purpose and we need a grant for fleet grid connection and upgrade costs, and for the connection process to be streamlined and accelerated.
“And thirdly, to remove regulatory barriers. The current framework for vehicle testing and driver regulations is outdated and at odds with a zero-emission future.”
Published On: 07/03/2024 16:00:00
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In brief
Best February performance for van market since 1998
According to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) issued 5 March 2024, new light commercial vehicle (LCV) registrations grew by 2.2% to 17,934 units in the best February performance for 26 years.
The figures were boosted by continued rising demand for large vans (weighing 2.5 -3.5 tonnes) with registrations of 12,300 vehicles (1.4% increase) representing almost seven in 10 (68.6%) of all new van registrations. Small vans (up to and including 2.0 tonnes) and medium-sized vans (greater than 2.0 to 2.5 tonnes) saw declines, falling by -20.5% to 275 units and -5.9% to 3,162 units respectively.
More worrying are the figures for battery electric vans (up to 3.5 tonnes), with registrations of only 847 units, a drop of 119 units compared with the same period last year. This decline now means that February 2024’s market share of battery electric vans now stands at 4.7%, down from 5.5% a year ago.
“With the zero emission vehicle mandate for manufacturers now in place the decline in registrations of battery electric vans last month is a concern,” said Denise Beedell, Senior Policy Manager at Logistics UK.
“In partnership with BVRLA, the AFP, RECHARGE UK and The Electric Café, we launched the Zero Emission Van Plan last month which calls for more decarbonisation support for van operators including a van accessible public chargepoint network, continued government support for acquisition incentives and more support for operators that need to increase energy supplies at depots.
“Without targeted support, for van fleet operators will find it increasingly challenging to decarbonise their vehicles in time for the net zero deadlines.”
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