Electric vehicle integration would require infrastructure upgrades at town facilities. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

regular meeting

Municipal report advises against electric vehicle integration

Jan 25, 2024 | 3:00 PM

La Ronge administration has compiled a Vehicle Management Plan after a request to do so was made by council.

The goal of the review was to describe the current fleet, vehicle usage, confirm necessary vehicle features, document mileage and wear patterns on each vehicle, review powertrain and technology options, confirm industry standards for lifecycle replacement, and make recommendations regarding vehicle types, quantities, lifecycle frequencies, and actual replacement dates.

As part of the review, council wanted to look at the potential integration of electric, hybrid, or other technologies to incorporate into fleet replacements.

The review found that several issues came with integrating electric vehicles into the fleet. It noted electric vehicle warranty work may be more inconvenient due to special shipping requirements, there are higher upfront costs (15 to 50 per cent) for electric and hybrid vehicles, and charging ports and supporting infrastructure would be required at numerous town sites to support electric vehicles.

“There are several services and departments that have unpredictive emergency response functions (airport, fire, public works), and the reliability of responding vehicles is crucial,” the plan adds. “For example, ongoing or repeated emergencies can require vehicles to be in use for periods that do not align with the recharging needs of electric vehicles. As such, electric vehicles do not generally meet the needs of emergencies.”

Sports

Bedard's three-point effort leads Canada past Denmark 5-1 at hockey worlds

May 12, 2024

Wildfires

Fort McMurray under evacuation alert due to out-of-control wildfire nearby

May 11, 2024

the arts

Ulriksen showcases life and times of family with debut art exhibit

May 09, 2024

The report also mentions the maintenance for hybrid vehicles is slightly higher than gas-powered vehicles due to the two systems involved, as well town mechanics would require additional or specialized training for electric vehicle maintenance.

“As part of this review, the town wanted to look at the use of UTVs as a significantly lower capital cost, lower maintenance cost, and lower operating cost (e.g., insurance) alternative to trucks,” the report states. “Fully equipped UTVs can have 4×4, enclosed cabs, towing capabilities, storage, and can operate on town roads (not the highway).”

Altogether, there are 16 vehicles in the town’s fleet including the Chevrolet Silverado, Ford F-150, GMC Sierra, Ford Focus, and GMC Terrain. The prior lifecycle for town trucks was 10 years, which is a typical lifecycle used by municipalities. In analyzing mileage levels for town vehicles, administration is recommending increasing the lifecycle to 12 years.

Administration is also making other recommendations like council and town employees using personal vehicles, when possible, when attending out-of-town conferences and meetings, and using UTVs wherever practical as a lower-cost alternative when replacing trucks. There’s also a recommendation to revise policies to better address personal vehicle use issues that could arise and to integrate a cost-benefit component of hybrid vehicles into vehicle procurement in the future.

“The pursuit of electric vehicles integration into the fleet should be deferred until/if council approves the development of the supporting capital infrastructure,” the review concludes.

–

derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com