Mitsubishi Leading Nationwide Electric Vehicle Trial
Electric cars Mitsubishi i-MiEV are hitting Birmingham streets.
A 12-month trial of low carbon cars is being initiated to discover how Britons can cope with greener transport systems.
Twenty-five Mitsubishi innovative Electric Vehicles (i-MiEVs) have been handed to independent motorists on the initial day of a project backed by the UK Government.
The real life test run, which is the first of many to take place across the country, is being carried out by the Coventry and Birmingham Low Emission Vehicle Demonstrators (CABLED) group, who chose Birmingham as the launch city.
The testers, including car expert Quentin Willson, will give a trial run to the vehicles as Birmingham’s Aston University is set to keep track of their usage as well as what type of infrastructure could be required to accommodate it’s widespread usage.
A Government-established organisation, the Technology Strategy Board, is overseeing the £25 million scheme. Counting eight regional teams, CABLED is the first to test the low-carbon vehicles.
Across the UK, 340 of these vehicles manufactured by a various companies are scheduled to be tested by using funds given by the Board and the Department for Transport.
Willson, ex-Top Gear presenter, said about the first EVs (electric vehicles), that their trial mark the beginning of a complete shift in the kind of vehicle the people drive and how they are powered.
Willson said that the world will be changed by a transport revolution led by Mitsubishi i-MiEV.
Jaguar/Land Rover, Mercedes Benz/Smart and Tata are the manufacturers of the low-carbon vehicles which will also take part in the trial.