Officials in Indianapolis have agreed to end its electric vehicle (EV) leasing program and gradually return the majority of the vehicles to the supplier.
February 21, 2018
Photo courtesy of Vision Fleet
1 min to read
Photo courtesy of Vision Fleet
Officials in Indianapolis have agreed to end a controversial electric vehicle (EV) leasing program and gradually return the majority of the vehicles to the supplier, Fox 59 reported.
The 2014 Vision Fleet Contract, signed by then-Mayor Greg Ballard, was meant to provide the city was 425 leased EVs and plug-in hybrids at a cost of $32 million through 2021, at which point the city was to purchase the vehicles for $1; Indiana’s capital city would then be responsible for remarketing the vehicles.
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The contract also stated that Vision Fleet would provide charging infrastructure installation, preventive maintenance, and vehicle analytics.
At the time of the original deal’s signing, city officials opposed it and the city council eventually sued Ballard for not following procurement protocol. While vehicle deployment was halted during litigation, the lawsuit was eventually settled, and Vision Fleet signed a new contract with the city to continue supplying the vehicles.
The new deal signed by current Mayor Joe Hogsett with Indy-Vision Funding I, LLC, will have the city return the 200 cars it has already received by Jan. 1, 2019. It will keep 12 of the vehicles and pay $500,000 for the 43 charging stations built at five city-owned property sites. The city states this was because the vehicles do not meet the needs of city agencies.
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