What fleet data shows about electric van suitability
The UK’s ZEV mandate requires 24% of new van sales to be zero-emission in 2026, rising towards 70% by 2030. As fleet operators face increasing pressure to accelerate electrification, new analysis suggests that choosing the right routes may be more important than simply deciding how many electric vans to deploy.
Simon Ridley, Managing Director at Dawsongroup vans, a nationwide commercial van rental company specialising in long-term fixed-term rental agreements tailored to specific business needs, says fleet operators need to look beyond headline vehicle numbers when planning their transition.
“The question most fleet managers ask is, how many electric vans do they need? The more useful question is which vans, on which routes? Those are two very different conversations, and the answer to the second one changes everything.”
New analysis from Dawsongroup vans, based on 12 months of real-world telematics data from 49 electric light commercial vehicles, provides insight into how route characteristics and annual mileage influence electric van performance.
The findings indicate that annual mileage and route type have a direct impact on efficiency, with some operating patterns delivering considerably stronger results than others.
Electric Vans Perform Best on 10,000 to 25,000-Mile Routes
Across the dataset, vehicles covered annual mileages ranging from fewer than 10,000 to more than 45,000 miles. The strongest and most consistent efficiency was recorded among vans travelling between 10,000 and 25,000 miles a year.
These vehicles were typically used for urban multi-drop deliveries, suburban service routes and local field operations. Such duty cycles allow electric vans to exploit several of their key efficiency advantages, including frequent stopping, lower average speeds and energy recovery through regenerative braking.
The findings are particularly significant because the average UK van mileage is relatively low. Uswitch data puts average annual van mileage at 8,232 miles, suggesting a substantial proportion of working vans could operate within the mileage range where electric vehicles perform particularly well.
“When electric vans are used on predictable urban and suburban duty cycles, they can deliver reliable performance all year round,” says Ridley. “The routes that work best for electrification are usually the ones fleet managers already know inside out. The daily mileage is consistent, the vehicles return to base each evening, and overnight depot charging removes most of the uncertainty.”
Motorway Routes Present a Greater Challenge
The analysis found that electric vans covering higher annual mileages, particularly those operating on motorway-heavy routes, experienced lower efficiency throughout the year rather than only during winter.
Sustained higher speeds can reduce the efficiency advantage of electric vehicles compared with stop-start urban driving. Importantly, the difference between mileage bands remained evident during summer, when operating conditions across the fleet were at their most favourable.
Winter weather creates an additional challenge. Dawsongroup’s data shows that colder conditions can reduce usable range by between 30% and 40% across the fleet. Vehicles that already consume more energy throughout the year therefore face significantly greater operational pressure when temperatures fall.
Research from the 2025 Arval Mobility Observatory Barometer also found that around a third of fleets were already operating electric vans on routes exceeding 100 miles a day. For these operators, battery capacity, charging availability and route planning become critical considerations.
“Higher-mileage routes are not unsuitable for electric vans, but they do demand a more disciplined approach,” says Ridley. “That means specifying vehicles with larger battery capacities, building charging into the working day rather than relying on it happening opportunistically, and setting route lengths around worst-case winter performance rather than summer averages.”
Route Planning Should Come Before Electric Van Selection
The findings reinforce the importance of putting route analysis at the centre of an electric van strategy. Rather than beginning with the question of which electric van to buy or lease, fleet managers should first identify which existing routes are most suitable for electrification.
That assessment should consider annual mileage, daily distances, payload requirements, vehicle utilisation and, crucially, where and when vehicles can realistically be recharged.
Urban fleets also have another consideration. England currently has seven charging Clean Air Zones, while London operates the separate Ultra Low Emission Zone across the capital. Scotland has four Low Emission Zones. For operators working within or around these areas, the cost of running non-compliant diesel vans is already an operational consideration, with further restrictions potentially increasing the financial case for zero-emission vehicles.
For mixed fleets operating a combination of urban, suburban and long-distance routes, a phased electrification strategy is likely to deliver the most practical results. Starting with vehicles operating within the 10,000 to 25,000-mile sweet spot can provide valuable real-world performance data while allowing charging infrastructure and operating procedures to develop before more demanding routes are tackled.
“The fleets getting this right are not trying to make electric vans work everywhere at once. They are starting with the routes where the vehicles perform best and building from there,” says Ridley. “Get that right and the performance figures do the talking. When it is not, confidence in the transition tends to unravel quickly.”
For fleet managers facing increasingly demanding ZEV mandate targets, the message is clear: successful electric van adoption is not simply about replacing diesel vehicles with electric alternatives. Understanding how, where and when vehicles operate could be the key to delivering an efficient and resilient fleet electrification strategy.
