By Fraser Clarke
COUNCILS have spent nearly £1million on electric cars they barely use.
They have lavished £962,442 on just 147 electric vehicles since 2011.
But the vehicles have done only 5,843 miles on average, even though some of them are six years old and most cars do about 8,000 miles per year.
The total mileage for the same cars came in at 859,020, which has led to critics suggesting the councils have not “utilised them to the optimal level”.
Read more: EasyJet plane came within 75ft of being struck by drone as it came in to land at Edinburgh Airport
Critics say the low mileage of the electric cars is “another example of local authorities being far too quick to spend taxpayers’ money”.
Some councils have promoted their use of electric vehicles for their zero emissions and green benefits.
However, limited range and storage space, as well as a questionable image, mean the cars come with limitations.
A freedom of information request has revealed Edinburgh Council has a fleet of electric vehicles dating back to 2011. A car purchased in December 2014 for £21,037.91 has done only 5,803 miles, meaning a cost of over £3.50 for each mile it’s covered since it was bought.
Read more: Sturgeon warns of "heavy price" if more Tory MPs elected
Similarly, it has an electric vehicle purchased in September 2012 for £11,528, which has only done 9,679 miles – a cost of more than £1 per mile.
Aberdeen City Council has four leased cars bought in September 2016 at a cost of £8580.96 each. They have done 262 miles, 418, 1,421 and 1,842 miles respectively.
The city also has a fifth car bought in March 2013 for £11,042.93, which has done 14,219 miles – that’s just over 3,550 miles per year.
Glasgow City Council has 17 electric vehicles, but refused to provide details on the costs of each vehicle. Three of its cars were bought in 2012, with a further 14 taken on lease in 2015.
Benefits of electric cars include zero-emissions, which helps the environment and reduces air pollution. They cut CO2 emissions, and are cheaper to run and maintain.
But critics maintain the councils have not been getting proper use out of their cars.
Moray Council purchased a Peugeot iOn for £27,666 in July 2011, but in the past six years it has only covered 14,112 miles.
Perth and Kinross Council purchased one of its electric vehicles in March 2012 for £12,725 but it has only done 8,570 miles in the past five years.
Read more: Can Glasgow's new Tories really make a breakthrough?
Highland Council has a Toyota Prius purchased in November 2016 at a lease cost of £3,286 per year but has yet to cover a single mile.
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “This is another example of local authorities being far too quick to spend taxpayers’ money before carrying out a thorough examination of what families are getting in return for their taxes.
“Well-intended these schemes may well be, but if the cars are not being utilised to the optimal level, is there really any justification for wasting such a large amount of money on them?
Liam Kerr, transport spokesman for the Scottish Conservatives, said: “The Scottish Government hasn’t been shy in lecturing motorists about what they should and shouldn’t drive. And while it’s reasonable enough to promote environmentally-friendly alternatives, how can the SNP expect drivers to take this message on if councils don’t?
“This experiment has come at quite an expense to the taxpayer, and it’s simply not working.”
“One of the most popular electric cars on the market is the Nissan Leaf, which can travel up to 155 miles per charge depending on conditions.
They typically cost £16,680 and take 30 minutes to charge 80per cent of the battery.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel