JACKSONVILLE, FL - The local engineering arm of the U.S. Navy plans to cut transportation costs by renting about 345 slow-moving electric vehicles by 2015, bringing its fleet to 750 such vehicles, according to the Jacksonville Business Journal.
Overall naval command plans to add more than 2,500 electric vehicles to the Navy's fleet to reduce its petroleum use by half by 2015.
NAVFAC Southeast command, which is headquartered in Jacksonville, has 314 electric vehicles ranging from sedans to cargo vans.
The rental of an electric sedan or pickup is 44 percent cheaper than that of a traditional gas-powered vehicle.
The Navy estimates the maintenance of the vehicles will be 15 to 20 percent less than the gas-powered equivalents. The vehicles are designed for 20 mph to 25 mph usage, according to the newspaper.
