I guess the Queensland market probably
differs to other states in Australia in that
you’ve got so much geographic size to cover
in terms of kilometres. In terms of EVs and
their overall range, do you think that would
make the roadside assist vehicles more likely
to be called out than in other states?
J: Yeah, for sure. Look, I think it’s just the
sheer geographic size of Queensland that
means we are many years away from getting
complete saturation of a charging station system
throughout the state. But if you look at our
coastline, our superhighway from Coolangatta
to Cairns has now got charging facilities all the
way up the coast. We’re working very closely
with the government as well on driving initiatives
with more awareness of charging and working
with the Queensland government staff as well.
When they drive EVs they’ve got an app on their
phone that helps find the nearest charging spot
and is really helping these guys to really push the
evolution of EVs.
D: So, what are the trends you’re noticing
in terms of EVs? Are you seeing any sort
of noticeable sales or initiatives getting off
the ground?
J: We’re seeing an increase in fleet memberships
and also regarding EVs and hybrids as well. So,
it’s the hot topic when I meet most of my clients.
The first thing we always ask is what vehicle are
you running? We then compare the makes and
models out there and discuss the benefits of all
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these models. When we get talking, we find it’s a
pretty small world there but we all share the same
common ground and vision of getting green
vehicles on the road.
D: Is RACQ getting involved in making
changes to its own drivers as well?
J: From a RACQ side a lot of our staff are now
using hybrid vehicles and we’ve got a couple
of electric vehicles in our fleet too. So, we’re
driving the “green way” and some of our staff are
personally investing in them as well.
D: What is it that makes RACQ so
unique and helpful in its roadside assist
operations?
J: We’re been an advocate for driver safety
in vehicles for the last 115 years throughout
Queensland. We’ve got a network covering the
entire state so wherever our clients or fleets vehicles
are throughout Queensland, we’ve got you covered
and will always have a solution for you.
D: Would there be any other sort of things
you’d like to highlight or anything about the
product in terms of timeframes or anything
like that?
J: I’d probably say that like everyone else RACQ
is still learning as we go. We’re looking at the
way EV’s are evolving in their different battery
capacities and recovery rates on various models
and looking at general trends from that. Whatever
the case we’re committed to providing a variety
of EV solutions for our members.