13 vehicles to join city fleet
VANCOUVER—In a decision to green its municipal fleet with zero-emission vehicles, the City of Vancouver will purchase 13 Mitsubishi i-MiEV hatchbacks. The i-MiEV will be used to replace gasoline-powered vehicles at the end of their useful life. With these replacements, Vancouver now claims the greenest municipal fleet in Canada.
All 13 units will arrive by the end of 2012, with the potential of an additional 17 orders in 2013. The City of Vancouver’s i-MiEV purchase is the largest of its kind since i-MiEVs launch in Canada in mid-December 2011.
Vancouver mayor Gregor Robertson said going green is good for business and taxpayers, and supports Vancouver’s Greenest City transportation goals.
“By introducing more electric vehicles like the Mitsubishi i-MiEV into our fleet, we’re taking proactive steps to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions,” said Robertson. “The 13 new Mitsubishi i-MiEVs will ensure the City is lowering its carbon footprint and saving on fuel costs, while maintaining efficient service delivery across Vancouver.”
Vancouver will pool its i-MiEVs among City staff to transport people, materials and equipment to meetings and worksites, fully utilizing its efficiencies, range and 1,430 L (50.5 cubic feet) of cargo capacity with the rear seats down. The City plans to install a number of Level Two 240-volt charging stations at city sites; they are able to fully charge an i-MiEV in less than seven hours.
Based on the EnerGuide label from Natural Resources Canada, i-MiEV achieves the equivalent of 1.9 L/100 km (city) and 2.1 L/100 km (city/highway). EnerGuide projects i-MiEV’s annual energy costs at $449. The average new vehicle is rated at 10.0 L/100 km – requiring $12,600 to fuel over five years. That puts i-MiEV savings at over $10,000 over five years in fuel costs alone.
Fleet deliveries so far include British Columbia’s Saanich Police Department, the city of Calgary, city of Toronto, Hydro-Québec, Government of Quebec, and Transport Canada.
