National Highways is adding more than 300 fully electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles to its fleet, cutting emissions while ensuring continued service.

New arrivals include plug-in hybrid BMW X5 and Kia XCeeds plus fully electric Hyundai Kona small SUVs

The new vehicles include 31 fully electric Hyundai Kona small SUVs, which are being used across the country for general maintenance and inspection pool cars. It’s also adding 65 Kia XCeed PHEVs to replace some of the existing vehicles used to conduct structural surveys.

A total of 24 plug-in hybrids are also on the way for traffic officers, joining the existing 187 PHEVs on the fleet and including Volvo XC90 Recharge and BMW X5 PHEVs. These vehicles play a vital role in supporting its target to clear 86% cent of motorway incidents within one hour.

Finally, the company has also introduced Kia XCeed PHEVs to replace some of its existing diesel vehicles used by teams to conduct surveys of gantries, bridges and other structures across the Strategic Road Network (SRN).

The new vehicles are set to cut around 250 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year and the rollout will complete in the coming months.

Under its net zero plan, National Highways has set an interim target of 75% of the fleet to be electric or hybrid by 2025 while non-traffic officer light vehicles will be 100% electric by 2027, followed by traffic officer vehicles in 2030 – when vehicles meeting the required safety requirements are expected to be widely available.

Steve Elderkin, director of environmental sustainability for National Highways, said: “As a company, we operate more than 1,300 vehicles so introducing so many new electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids really helps accelerate our journey to net zero, drastically cutting our emissions.

“This is a huge step towards that commitment, and we will continue to invest in green and electric vehicles as the technology becomes available, meeting the Government’s Road to Zero strategy.”

Andy Butterfield, operations customer service director, added: “Our front-line operational teams provide a 24/7, 365 days a year service and play an integral part of our operation. These vehicles will not only withstand the rigours of the role but are also cost effective, versatile, reliable and greener.

“These vehicles will help ensure that the network can remain free-flowing and properly maintained while also significantly cutting our emissions as we drive towards net zero.”

The XC90 Recharge and X5 PHEV models have all been converted by Safeguard SVP Ltd with enhanced storage capability, advanced lighting and distinctive livery, and will utilise an ancillary battery pack allowing the vehicles to run purely on electric or alongside the traditional combustion engine – cutting emissions and reducing fuel and SMR costs.

The company has said its approach and speed of fleet changeover will be based on the market availability of suitable vehicles, the whole life greenhouse gas footprint of different fuel options and when existing vehicles reach the end of their leases.

The move to electric vehicles is among a host of measures National Highways is taking to improve air quality and tackle carbon emissions from road transport as the UK takes steps to become a zero-carbon economy by 2050.

Other National Highways measures to tackle air quality and carbon emissions include a target for the gritter fleet to switch to hydrogen or electricity by 2040, while it will reduce the carbon footprint from other travel by using technology to introduce new ways of working and by focusing on low-carbon business travel.