Electric vehicles take on North Coast 500 (NC500) for EV Rally of Scotland; fleet sets off from Inverness bound for Thurso
A fleet of electric vehicles has set off from Inverness on a 600-mile challenge that will take in swathes of the North Coast 500.
The annual EV Rally of Scotland, which first began in 2021, sees EV vehicles take off on a multi-day challenge designed to highlight the benefits of going electric, highlight innovation within the field of EV charging, as well as clean energy.
And this year’s route was chosen to take in much of the NC500, with vehicles heading off from outside the Eastgate Centre in Inverness on Thursday morning.
Their route on day one will take them up the west coast before heading along Sutherland’s northern shores to Thurso along a 266-mile route. They will then completing the remainder of their journey on Friday, with their travels taking them to John O’Groats and the A9 down the east coast back to Inverness and then south through Aviemore to Perth before reaching the finish line in Edinburgh
A spokesperson for the event said: “The route has been chosen to take teams far and wide, taking in areas with charging-a-plenty, as well as others where the infrastructure is not so readily available.
“Incorporating some of the trickiest and most rural areas in the UK, taking on the iconic NC500 will be great… and at the same time, demonstrating how much the ‘Electric A9’ is helping Scottish fleets to electrify is equally as important.
“Thanks to the social media power that comes from the EV Rally events, we will be able to highlight where government and local authorities need to focus their attention, if e-mobility is to become ‘the norm’.”
They added that this year’s journey “will be seriously testing the fantastic ChargePlace Scotland public charging network”.
Teams who will be driving EV vehicles in the challenge include a range of businesses, organisations and government agencies - ranging from the AA and Speedy Hire, AM Phillip and evolt Charging, to ScotRail, Scottish Water and Transport Scotland, and more... Highland Council hosted the start in Inverness.
Assisting the organisers will be Event Logistics Partner, Maxus, whose award-winning electric vans will be used to deploy event branding, flags and checkpoint materials and staff. They will also be taking part in the rally, as ‘Team Maxus’, to showcase their new to market E-Deliver 7 mid-size electric commercial vehicle, as well as GREENFLEET Vehicle of the Year for 2023 – the all-electric T90 Pick-Up.
Following the Teams will be the organisers’ ‘Roadside Assistance Partner’, the AA , whose “yellow comfort blanket” will be warmed and ready should any of the teams have any issues.
To assist with ensuring drivers actually make the best use of their batteries, the organisers also have their ‘Driver Training Partner’, Drivetech . They will address the teams and post across the Team channel, offering eco-driving tips, sprinkled with driver safety information, ensuring ‘range anxiety’ is merely a myth, and not a reality.
For more information about the EV Rally of Scotland, visit https://ev-rally.co.uk/evros.
