Royal Jersey cleans up with electric LDV

George Barrow
February 21, 2020

Commercial laundry Royal Jersey has begun using an electric LDV 3.5-tonner to transport linen between its Dagenham site and a number of five-star hotels in London.

The fully-electric LDV EV80, which entered service in early February, has been supplied in a five-year contract hire deal by Hireco. The medium-roof panel van comes with a 56kW battery, providing a range of 120 miles and a load volume of just over 10 cu m. It is expected to do around 60-80 miles a day, ferrying loads of uniforms and guest linen between customers and Royal Jersey’s laundry.

The EV80 joins two electric Renault Kangoos at the company and six conventional diesel vehicles – three 18-tonners and three 7.5-tonners.

Royal Jersey transport manager Martin Lawler said all of the electric vehicles were working out well for his operation so far.

“Driving into London is getting harder and harder with diesel vehicles, so we wondered if electric ones would be better. We started off with our first Kangoo about 18 months ago and it worked perfectly for us. Then I got another one as the business expanded. Compared to diesel vehicles, we don’t have to pay the Congestion Charge or any road tax, or the cost of the fuel. It has worked out as quite a significant saving over a few months,” he told CM.

“Although the Kangoos are good, we’re getting more and more work in all of the time. So I thought it would be good to go a bit bigger and provide more capacity with the next one,” he added.

The LDV is used for three runs a day in and out of London from Dagenham between charges and does very well, said Lawler. “I can’t fault it – I think it’s marvellous,” he stated. “With diesel or petrol engines, there’s always something that goes wrong but the only thing [to worry about] on an electric is the battery, and that’s covered under warranty over the five-year period, so it’s only the tyres we have to think about.”

The company is already looking into replacing its 7.5-tonners with electrics, and expects to do so in the next year or so, he added. “We operate 24/7 and it will help us get around any further obstacles that may come in on driving into London with diesel,” he explained.

About the Author

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George Barrow

George has been writing about nearly anything with wheels for the past 15 years and is the UK jury member of the International Van of the Year and International Pick-Up Award.

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