Electric Peugeot iOn Lights Up Orkney

In a drive to cut fuel bills and reduce emissions, Orkney Island Council has become the latest Scottish authority to boost its fleet with one.

And as the success of the all electric car – which is capable of covering more than 90 miles on a full charge - grows and its capabilities become more widely recognised, the Leader of the Council is delighted that it runs on something the remote islands have in abundance – renewable energy.

Stephen Hagan said: “Much of the electricity used in Orkney is delivered from renewable sources, mainly wind turbines at present, and with a growing number of wave and tidal energy devices already being tested in the waters around our islands, this will increase.

“We were keen to road test the potential for electric vehicles in Orkney and thanks to the funding from Transport Scotland, we were able to purchase the Peugeot iOn.”

He added: “In many ways the Peugeot iOn is well suited to our island way of life. It has zero emissions, it’s nippy and here in Orkney we can charge it up using electricity generated from the wind, waves and tides.

“While electric cars are normally best suited for city locations, but here on Orkney it is easily coping with our demands. The iOn can easily manage the trip from our offices here in Kirkwall to Birsay, our most northerly parish, and then to South Ronaldsay at the opposite end of our island chain.”

Enlisted as a pool car, it is already a popular choice for the car park and attendants and road technicians who use the iOn to get around the islands.

Phil Robson, Peugeot Fleet Director, said: “Here at Peugeot we have led the way on many innovations and the all-electric iOn is another successful chapter in our 200-year history.”

“While the iOn can lay claim to being the most northerly electric car in Britain, it isn’t the most northerly electric vehicle, that title belongs to a specially converted Peugeot Explorer van being used by the local authority in Shetland!” he added.

The iOn’s arrival on Orkney ironically comes three weeks after the car won the inaugural Electric Car of the Year award handed out by the Association of Scottish Motoring Writers.

Praised for its “ease of use, realistic battery range and affordability”, it was the iOn’s actual driving characteristics that the Scottish journalists compared to any petrol or diesel car in its small car category which gave the iOn the edge over its rivals.