AA expands EV fleet with 15 Ford electric vans
The AA has boosted its vehicle fleet with 15 all-electric vans as it works to be net zero by 2035.
The UK’s largest motoring organisation has added the Ford E-Transit Customs to its roadside assistance fleet, along with 15 more Transit Custom plug-in hybrids (PHEVs).
The vehicles form part of the organisation’s major trial of plug-in vehicles via its ‘test and scale’ programme.
‘Test and scale’ allows the organisation’s vehicle fleet to tackle what it considers to be “unprecedented challenges” in the real world as it begins its transition from fossil fuels to battery power over the course of the next decade.
At the start of 2025, there will be over 50 AA roadside assistance vehicles participating in the ‘test and scale’ programme including its mobile mechanics workshops, key assist workspaces, roadside patrol vans, and slidebed recovery trucks.
The test and scale assessments include home and off-site charging, plus vehicle efficiency tests when laden with technical kit and equipment recovery. Further tests assess levels of comfort for the vans’ users.
The all-electric Ford E-Transit Custom offers a range of up to 236 miles, which drops to around 120 miles when towing. The PHEV version is capable of towing a full compact recovery trailer (CRT).
Expected to be operational during the first quarter of 2025, the plug-in vans will operate around London, Birmingham, Nottingham, Liverpool, Bristol, and Glasgow.
The AA’s head of fleet, Duncan Webb, said that the test and scale model has already exceeded the organisation’s expectations.
“The famous yellow AA van has seen countless improvements over the decades, but few innovations can be more important than the latest, which sees our ever-reliable fleet of Ford Transit Customs begin its transition to BEV and PHEV,” he said.
“The performance of the low-emissions vehicles we launched earlier this year continues to achieve or exceed our expectations. The results, so far, have proved that our test and scale approach remains the most common-sense way of tackling what are unprecedented challenges.
“If current trends shown in our test and scale approach continue, our strategy could prove pivotal in moving The AA move ever closer to achieving its goal of becoming a net zero organisation by 2035.”
In May 2024, the AA became the first UK-based roadside assistance firm to make the switch to battery power by adding three full-time, all-electric vehicles to its 240-strong fleet.
