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01.04.2019
One of the first questions that springs to mind when considering making the switch to an electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle, is ‘where can I charge it’? Despite many of the worries regarding the expense and range of electric vehicles having been put safely put to bed, there is still a concern that charge points aren’t as prevalent as petrol stations.
To address these worries, and to complement its commitment to releasing 16 fully electric vehicles within a global portfolio of 40 electrified vehicles by 2022, Ford has developed a smart algorithm based on more than one million kilometres of driving data – including where drivers actually stopped – to identify the best places to install new rapid charging points.
Ford fitted 160 connected vans with a plug-in device to record journey data, including where vehicles went, where they stopped and how long they stopped for. This generated more than 500 million data points from 15,000 days of vehicle use. By strategically placing new charging points, this will help drivers to top up their motors without having to make special trips outside of their usual routes. This will be of particular interest to delivery drivers and businesses with fleets.
John Scott of Ford Mobility commented: “Electrification changes the way we drive – and refuel – our vehicles. We realise that charging time and behaviour are fundamentally different for electric vehicles compared with traditional models, where refilling with petrol or diesel may take only five minutes. In locating these additional charging points, we’ve attempted to take into account regular driving and stopping patterns so that topping up slots into drivers’ regular day-to-day activities.”
Ford claims that its study could also be actioned in other cities besides London to help local authorities best plan for an electrified future – something that is clearly needed. According to a recent BBC article, more than a third of local authorities were found to have 10 or fewer locations where drivers can plug in their vehicles, with wide variation across the country.
At Johnsons, we welcome this new research – with more than 170,000 electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles now registered, it is clear that an improved network of charging points is required.
Ford’s research is a step in the right direction – it is now up to local authorities to provide more charging points in order to support the zero-emissions driving they are actively championing. To find out more about our selection of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, click here.
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Johnsons Cars Limited is an appointed representative of ITC Compliance Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (their registration number is 313486) and which is permitted to advise on and arrange general insurance contracts as an intermediary.
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As an FCA regulated credit broker we can introduce you to a selected group of lenders / brokers (see below) who may be able to help you finance your purchase. This group of lenders / brokers provides us with a range of products which may be suitable for your purchase. We will explain the key features of those products to you.
Volkswagen Financial Services (UK) Limited, Evolution Funding Limited, Santander Consumer (UK) plc, Honda Finance Europe PLC, CA Auto Finance UK Ltd, Suzuki Financial Services Limited, Volkswagen Financial Services (UK) Limited, Hyundai Capital UK Limited, Stellantis Financial Services Uk Limited, Toyota Financial Services (UK) PLC, FCE Bank Plc,
We are a credit broker and not a lender. We can introduce you to a limited number of lenders and their finance products, we act as their agent for this introduction. We are not an independent financial advisor; we will provide details of products available. We may advise you on the products, subject to your personal circumstances, though you are not obliged to take our advice or recommendation.
We do not charge you a fee for our services. we will typically receive commission from whichever lender we introduce you to (either a fixed fee or a fixed percentage of the amount you borrow).
Unless we consider it to be inappropriate given your personal circumstances, for certain vehicles e.g. New, our approach is to introduce you to the lender who are usually able to offer the best available package for you, taking into account interest rates, residual valuations (where applicable) and other contributions. If they are unable to make you an offer of finance, or the vehicle is not one that we would normally place with them we will introduce you to other lenders on our panel. The lender we introduce you to and available rates will depend upon a number of factors including: the vehicle, your personal circumstances and the likelihood of a lender to accept an application based on information provided.
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