Grimshaw Lane Dairy takes ownership of four electric commercial vehicles
- Details
The Grimshaw Lane Dairy in Ormskirk has started using four Nissan e-NV200 vans. The Dairy is using its new commercial vehicles to make daily deliveries to businesses and homes in and around the town.
The new vehicles have been named Tilly, Bovine, Ermintrude and Daisy by their new drivers and are set to replace Grimshaw’s fleet of aging diesel vehicles with the latest additions covering an average of 50 miles a day, making around 500 deliveries each.
We recently reported that Fruit 4 London was making good use of the Nissan e-NV200 and was enjoying the fact that a full overnight charge costs just £2 and can cover 106 miles on a single charge.
With the vehicle running from British-built Nissan LEAF technology and costing just 2 pence per mile the fleet is saving the dairy £900 a month in fuel.
Members of staff are satisfied with the new Nissan fleet and the added functionality these new vehicles have over their older diesel counterparts. The ability to defrost their vehicles using an app on their mobile phones before getting up to start their shifts in the early hours has proved to be a huge hit.
The new additions are also making local residents happier too as the early morning deliveries, made around 1:30am, are now done in near silence due to the electronic motor driving the vehicle.
Grimshaw Dairy Managing director Andrew Brown has said, “Switching to the Nissan e-NV200 was a no brainer for us. Basically the savings we’re making on the fuel have paid for the contract hire on the vans and we’ll be saving on the maintenance too.” – he is already making plans to swap his two remaining diesel vehicles with e-NV200s in the upcoming months.
The Commercial Vehicle Show 2015 – registration opens
- Details
The Birmingham NEC is this year’s host for the 2015 Commercial Vehicle Show and visitor registration has opened.
Taking place between the 14th – 16th April the CV Show 2015 is looking set to be one of the biggest yet, with 385 exhibitors already booked. Exhibitors will be able to show off their latest products and services. Including vehicle manufacturers such as; Citroen, Fiat, Ford, DAF, Iveco, Mercedes-Benz and many more.
You can view the A to Z of exhibitors here.
Attendees will also be able to view fresh products and ideas from insurers, tyre manufacturers, training providers and other ancillary service providers.
If you are looking to go to the event make sure you book your tickets soon as visitor spots are sure to be filled up quickly – you can book your tickets online here.
Roadworks.org has relaunched their website with real-time traffic updates
- Details
Roadworks.org was launched back in 2003 as a way for the local authorities to make upcoming road works information publicly available to motorists, thus helping them to better arrange and adapt future journeys based on the information given.
The website was released to comply with the upcoming Traffic Management Act (2004). This act was an initiative to help tackle congestion and disruption on the road network.
This legislation placed responsibilities on the local traffic authorities to make sure that traffic could move quickly and freely, both on their roads and those of nearby authorities.
Towards the end of 2014 the Roadworks.org website was relaunched and can now access data supplied by several authorities; Google, the Highways Agency, regional traffic authorities in London and Manchester plus 169 of the 175 highway authorities in England – thus helping the site to become a national integrated traffic information hub.
The new redesign has given the website a more mobile-friendly user interface and presents live data on traffic, congestion, diversions, traffic incidents and public events in an easy to digest manner – all of this is available for free at Roadworks.org.
Volkswagen announce new Caddy van for 2015
- Details
Volkswagen have announced that the unveiling of the fourth generation Caddy van will take place in February 2015.
Not much is known about the upcoming model although it is rumoured to have a more productive load space.
The Volkswagen Caddy was released back in the early 80s and has built up a reputation as a hard wearing, reliable van.
It is rumoured that the new 2015 model will have similar styling to the 2015 VW Polo, featuring a similar frontend to the vehicle.
While the current generation of Caddy vans has proven to be immensely popular the small van’s shortfalls are becoming increasingly more apparent. When compared with competitive models like the Ford Transit Connect and Fiat Doblo the loading characteristics don’t sit as prettily.
Currently the maximum payload is 800kg, less than the one tonne for the Connect and Doblo. Also, most modern day vans feature wheel arch separation greater than 1,200mm - to accommodate a Europallet lengthways. The third generation Caddy features only 1,170mm.
We believe that the fourth generation Caddy van will feature improved loading characteristics to help ensure that it can remain on par with the competition and a firm favourite for years to come.
UK paper counterpart driving licences are coming to an end – what do you need to know?
- Details
From the 8th June 2015 the UK paper counterpart driving licence will no longer be issued by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).
Can I throw my paper driving licence away?
When the DVLA stops issuing the paper counterpart it is advisable for you to destroy your paper copy, you will still need to keep your current photocard driving licence however.
If your driving licence was issued before 1998 and you only have a paper driving licence you should keep hold of it as these will remain valid and, in this situation, should not be destroyed.
Why is this happening?
It’s a scheme that has been thought up by Government motoring agencies with the aim of removing ‘red tape’. By moving to an online system there will be a saving of £8 million.
A joint venture by the DVLA and Motor Insurers Bureau (MIB) has resulted in the creation of Mylicence. This is a service where drivers can check their details online.
Changing my driving licence address
You can still make use of your counterpart driving licence if you need to change your address details with the DVLA. This can be done online. If you do own a paper driving licence, the next time you update details with the DVLA you may be issued with a photocard to replace the paper counterpart.
Anything else?
There are other improvements being made to the online system in regards to car hire and insurance and we have no doubt that these details will be released before too long.
In addition to a valid UK driver’s licence there are a few other prerequisites that need to be adhered to when driving in the UK;
- The vehicle must have passed an MOT and be within the MOT expiration date,
- Drivers of cars, vans, motorcycles and other vehicles must pay road tax
- All drivers within the UK must have valid insurance
It is a criminal offence to drive without any of above. Luckily we can help you with your van insurance by helping you to secure insurance for your commercial vehicles at a great price.
Related Articles
