Scottish EV infrastructure ‘better than people think’

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An annual event designed to demonstrate the strength of Scotland’s electric vehicle technology and charging network has been deemed a big success by a Highland-based motor dealership.

Conon Bridge based AM Phillip Maxus attended the two-day Electric Vehicle Rally of Scotland (EVROS) on August 16 and 17, joining a 600-mile EV tour of the country in a Maxus T90 pickup.

The event, which aims to “bury the myth” that EVs don’t have the range or capabilities to service Scotland’s fleet sector, was first held during COP26 in 2021.

This year, over ten teams took part in the rally, representing Scottish business and the EV sector.

AM Phillip marketing manager Grant Mclean, who acted as co-driver to business development executive Mandy Walkden, said: “A lot of the difficulty with electric vehicles is that people don’t think the infrastructure is there yet. The whole idea of this rally is to show that it really isn’t as bad as people think it is. It’s actually an awful lot better.

“There was a lot of interest in it, with a lot of major players taking part, such as Transport Scotland, Scottish Power and Scottish Water. The whole idea is to show that the structure is there in Scotland for electric vehicles to support the fleet sector.

“We did it in a Maxus T90, which is actually the UK’s only electric pick-up, and that in itself attracted a lot of extra interest as most people were doing the route in regular cars. This was the first year that we completed the full event. It was an eye opener for us in some respects, as to just how straight forward it was. It is definitely something we’d be keen to do again.”

The EVROS tour started in Glasgow, making its way up the east coast via Dundee, before heading over to Inverness and Cromarty and back down the west coast to Glasgow.

Teams embarked on the 600 mile all-electric route with the aim of reaching 4–5 check points each day, putting the country’s EV infrastructure to the test.

Mr Mclean added: “I think in future, based on the feedback we provided, it would be a good idea to added a third day to this and go even further north and maybe even across the NC500 route. We would quite happily support that.”

More info on the event can be found at https://evros.uk

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