The 2012 Tour de France of electric vehicles made a stop at Sophia-Antipolis to discuss the advantages and disadvantages, talk about the energy of the future, and propose a real solution for communities. Green light on the road to electric!
The primary goal of the event seems to be to spark a change in mindset for communities. Today, it is crucial to think about our “ecological duty” with the aim of living more healthily. Besides the environmental question, electromobility has been leading us to ponder the well-known economic question for a few years now.
Thus, and this is not a preconceived notion, an electric vehicle is expensive to purchase, but be careful; one must consider the associated expenses, and that’s where it gets interesting. Forget the exorbitant fuel prices, no more grimaces at the pump; a 100km trip costs two (almost negligible) euros, and the state supports this “green” initiative with an ecological bonus of nearly 7000 euros. Moreover, communities making a group purchase will benefit from a buy-back commitment.
In short, so many advantages so far, and it’s not over yet; an electric vehicle is said to be “intelligent” because it only consumes what it really needs. As for specific features, electromobility has adapted to all the needs of communities, resulting in the emergence of electric utilities, electric-assist bicycles, quads, scooters, public transport vehicles, and even material handling equipment. Yes, electromobility has made a leap by offering choices, always more choices.
This tour of France for electric vehicles will prompt elected officials and community leaders to reconsider changing their range of service vehicles. A round table highlighted the various challenges that communes and communities face today. Questions, answers, and a major challenge: to adopt electric vehicles and reassure people about the potential of these environmentally friendly vehicles. La Poste Group, a partner of this tour de France, has already embraced electric vehicles and therefore shares its experience.
Just for the city of Nice, the public service has provided 32 electric cars and 14 electric quads for its employees. The group is won over and intends to continue investing in this sector; by 2015, nearly 10,000 such vehicles will enable ecological collection and distribution.
The message seems to have been delivered as smoothly as a letter at La Poste.
