The Evolution
of EVs
AfMA checks in with RACQ Fleet Sales Manager John Stark &
Manager of Fleet Operations Nigel Scott.
WORDS BY DANIEL BRAID
Daniel: A few months ago we were chatting
with the RACQ team about their mobile
patrol vehicle. What advancements have
been made within RACQ during this time?
John: The big focus for RACQ at the moment is
working with the future of mobility. We all know
that the evolution of EVs is upon us and given
those challenges it’s up to us to find and design
a roadside product that will support both our
fleet and commercial clients. I’ve been working
pretty closely with Nigel and the team in working
on a product. We spoke about the mobile patrol
vehicle last time but we’ve now gone one step
further and we’ve got 3 tow trucks that have now
got the EV charging facilities built into them ready
to go on the road.
Daniel: Nigel can you tell us more about the
basic purpose for the project?
Nigel: When I started the project, the brief was
basically that we needed to find a solution that
can load a battery-flat EV onto our tow truck and
put a couple of kilometres back in that car so
that when it gets to the other end, whether it’s
their house or a fast charger, they will be able to
drive it off the tow truck and get it to that point.
There could be five hundred metres worth of
driving inside a Westfield shopping centre to get
to that fast charger - of which our trucks can’t
get to. So it’s about providing that temporary
power.
Daniel: Are you finding people in the
Queensland region are especially keen at
investing in EVs?
John: From a fleet and commercial business
side? One hundred percent. We’ve got a lot
of our councils and government organisations
all working towards a three-year plan to have
EV’s in their fleet. The state governments are
very aggressive in the way they account for the
vehicles. And I think it’s more just having the
product. They’re a solution for them, for when
these vehicles do run out of battery. And the
service has been used a few times so far with
the mobile patrol vehicle. So we’re just adding
to the suite of products that we can offer our
commercial clients.
Daniel: Did RACQ do the building of the
charging facilities in-house or via third
parties?
24 ISSUE 24 AUGUST 2020 / WWW.AFMA.ORG.AU