Five-year EV trial in Victoria

The arrival of Mitsubishi's i-MiEV is the tipping point for a far-reaching study involving 180 Victorian households.

Expected to run five years, the trial was announced yesterday by Victorian Premier John Brumby during a ceremony marking the occasion of Mitsubishi's electric passenger vehicle arriving in Australia in commercial quantities.

"The plug-in Mitsubishi i-MiEV will play a part in the Government's ground-breaking $5 million electric vehicle trial, due to commence later this year," Brumby said.

"We are committed to making this state an electric vehicle friendly location and we understand how important cleaner, greener and innovative travel options are to Victorians.

"That's why the Victorian Government is currently working with the RACV to find around 180 households interested in taking part in an electric vehicle trial. The successful applicants will get an electric car for three months and we look forward to Mitsubishi being part of that trial.

"This world-leading trial will create real conditions by testing how drivers, vehicles, plug-in charging infrastructure and the electricity network will interact in real-life situations."

According to the Premier, the EV trial, which is a component of the Victorian Transport Plan, will evaluate a range of electric vehicles: passenger, commercial and two-wheeled. The government intends for the trial fleet of 60 vehicles to be rotated between the guinea-pig households, with each family running a vehicle for three months at a time. To facilitate the practical implementation of the trial, the government is aiming for 180 public charging points to be established around the state.

Australia is generally regarded as having the necessary private infrastructure to support large scale electric vehicle adoption for urban environments. Unlike other countries, Australian homes are more likely to feature off-street parking under cover, with power supply from the national grid connected to the home's garage.

That doesn't mean that companies such as Better Place Australia won't participate in setting up public recharging points and the company is one of Mitsubishi's Foundation Customer Group. Nor is Better Place the only company offering public recharging infrastructure to throw the hat into the ring, with ChargePoint also raising its hand for at least one i-MiEV from Mitsubishi's stock.