Toyota electric vehicles will run in French Urban Mobility Project

Toyota is ready to bring nimble, zero-emissions motoring to Europe’s crowded city centres with a fleet of its i-ROAD and COMS ultra-compact electric vehicles. This is the Japanese car manufacturer’s first set of electric vehicles. The chic and colourful three and four-wheelers are set to prove how clean and easy urban motoring can be by taking part in a major pilot programme in the French city of Grenoble.

Known a Cité lib by Ha:Mo, the programme is also supported by the local authorities in Grenoble, the French power supplier EDF, SODETREL, an EDF subsidiary that installs, manages and maintains electric charging points, and well-established local car-share operator Cité lib.

The concept is seen as a way of building a better-integrated public transport service, where people collect an electric vehicle from a location near their home or office to drive to a local transport hub for the next stage of their journey. Likewise, people arriving by bus or train can step into a car on arrival to complete the last leg of their trip. The network of charging stations is seamlessly connected to Grenoble’s transport network IT system to make total journey planning easier.

Toyota is a key partner in the three-year low-carbon car sharing scheme, which is expected to transform the way people plan and make local journeys. It is supplying 35 of each type of vehicle and is also contributing its Ha:Mo (harmonious mobility) system to manage the scheme day-to-day, following a model that’s already been successfully trialled in Toyota City in Japan.

From 1 October, anyone 18 or older who holds a valid driving licence can register with Cite Lib to gain access to the Toyota electric vehicles. Once subscribed to the service, they can download an application on their smartphone, tablet or computer to see the real-time location of vehicles that are charged and ready to use.