In 1965, Bob Dylan shocked the world by ‘going electric’. Soon enough, thousands of tourists may finally follow suit thanks to the bright sparks at Juicy Campervans.
The company aims to trial a new category of electric vehicle with two French tourists visiting approximately 30 destinations across the North Island. If the trial is deemed successful, Kiwis escaping the rat race to tour our countryside could also benefit, as Jucy CEO, Tim Alpe, explains.
“Electric vehicles are the future of the Jucy campervan fleet and this trial is the ideal platform to test our product offering for customers… Campervans are the perfect vehicle to be electrically powered as tourists tend to drive during the day and can then recharge overnight at their campground.”
He says electric campervans will serve a market seeking more environmentally sustainable travel options with cheaper running costs. However, the feasibility of ‘going electric’ will depend on the availability of charging stations.
“There are range limitations of the vehicles that need to be overcome to ensure tourists can travel long distances across the country, without the need to constantly recharge their battery,” Mr Alpe says. “We are working with camping grounds to introduce facilities for overnight charging but there is also a need to bring in rapid chargers on the roads between main centres.”