Local and regional governments as service providers

The agglomeration community of Rouen-Elbeuf-Austreberthe (France) has struck a deal with the car-maker Renault on 11 October to develop the uptake of electric cars in its territory.

The agglomeration community is also one of the twelve.pilot regional and local authorities which have recently committed.to experience and implement the installation of public battery charging stations in downtown cities.

The President of the agglomeration, Laurent Fabius, stated that the partnership would represent an opportunity to 'show that the electric car is becoming something more concrete" and to 'promote the agglomeration as a technological showcase".

In a first step, Renault has committed to make a dozens of electric cars available to the agglomeration. The models will be electric versions of either the Renault Kangoo or Fluence, which will both arrive on the market by mid-2011. These cars will complement the vehicles used by the agglomeration services and also by the city and the region, which support the operation. The vehicle purchase prices, as well as the installation and maintenance costs, will be shared between the constructor and the territorial authority.

The objective of the partnership is to determine how many stations need to be constructed, how far from each other they should be located and provide answers to other technical questions.