Northland's electric vehicle fleet boosted by national EV road trip

Whangārei's Canopy Bridge will host a fleet of electric vehicles again later this month when the #LeadingTheCharge Great EV Road Trip hits Northland again.

Northland's high rate of electric vehicle use will be boosted later this month when the #LeadingTheCharge Great EV Road Trip hits the region later this month.

The annual nationwide electric vehicle information road show will be visiting Northland on April 25 and 26, stopping at Whangārei, Kerikeri and, for the first time, Dargaville.

Northland's electric car users now have at least 15 charging stations to get around the north. They are installed in towns such as Kaiwaka, Matakohe, Ruakaka, Marsden Pt, Dargaville, Whangārei south, Whangārei central, Whangarei north, Tutukaka, Kawakawa, Kerikeri, Kaikohe and Kaitaia, Cooper's Beach, Pukenui and Waitiki Landing.

Last August, Whangārei was named the most the most electric vehicle friendly-town in New Zealand at the EVworld NZ Champions Award in Auckland.

The #LeadingTheCharge Great EV Road Trip is run by the Better NZ Trust, supported by the Energy and Efficiency Conservation Authority (EECA). Better NZ is a charitable trust with a mandate to create environmental, financial and health benefits for all New Zealanders through education, and by assisting in the adoption of zero carbon renewable energy technologies.

The trust is focusing on actively supporting the growth of a vibrant EV community in New Zealand and the Road Trip is the biggest event on the trust's calendar.

Trust Chairwoman Kathryn Trounson said The Great EV Road Trip has become a popular annual fixture for electric vehicle owners and enthusiasts nationwide and – importantly – for people who don't own an EV but would like to know more.

"It is a fun and easy way for people to find out everything they ever wanted to know about electric vehicles and to get a chance to drive or ride in a variety of electric vehicles for free. We love it when people experience an electric vehicle for the first time because their response is typically 'wow, that's amazingly quiet and smooth'," she said.

Trounson said the road trip will be visiting large and small centres nationwide and has extended its reach into a number of previously unvisited smaller towns this year because greatly improved battery storage technologies, coupled with an ever-expanding nationwide charging network, means that electric vehicles can now go anywhere in New Zealand.

The trip will be at the Warehouse, in Dargavillle from 1pm to 2pm on April 25, then at Whangārei's Canopy Bridge on the same day from 3pm to 5pm. The EVs will then visit Kerikeri Retirement Village on April 26 from 4pm to 5pm.