The Royal Mail has ordered its first electric vehicles for trials in the UK from Tanfield's Smith Electric Vehicles. The Edison 3.5-tonne electric van and the Newton 7.5-tonne truck will be on trial in London in parcel and post distribution operations.
A Smith spokesman says: "The Royal Mail has not given us an indication of how long the trials will be, though if the TNT trials are anything to go by they could be around four to six months. "The vehicles will be trialled on different routes
and in various weather conditions." Both vehicles have a restricted top speed of 50mph and are able to travel up to 150 miles on one battery charge.
Due to Smith's growing order book, it is extending its production capacity at its 23,200m2 assembly facility, Vigo Centre, in Tyne and Wear. The spokesman adds: "We were producing five vehicles a week - now we are producing 10. We are looking to increase this further."
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