College campuses to drive new year-long electric cars project

A PROJECT piloting the use of electric cars across the main campuses of two colleges that plan to merge has been launched.

The year-long project involves running four electric cars between the campuses of Jewel & Esk and Stevenson colleges and Midlothian Council headquarters, with plug-in points at each location.

Phoenix Mitsubishi has supplied the electric MiEV vehicles, while Siemens provides access to its expertise and range of global electric vehicle data.

Information will be collected from the pilot - including how many miles the cars cover per charge, the length of effective charging times, convenience and performance in different conditions.

The new "super college" wants to use the collaboration as a starting-point to establish expertise in electric vehicles, with scholarships sponsored by Siemens and Phoenix Mitsubishi.

Students will be able to follow a range of routes, including moving into higher education or going into management, as well as a more traditional technical apprenticeship.