As the AA gears up for another year supporting the EV Rally as its official Roadside Assistance Partner, Duncan Webb shares why the event remains a key opportunity for testing electric vehicle capabilities, dispelling myths and showcasing innovation.
We are delighted the AA is joining us again on the EV Rally. What has made you decide to take part again this year?
The EV Rally is a fantastic opportunity to test the UK EV infrastructure and the latest EV vehicles in environments designed to both gauge the capabilities of the charging network and measure vehicle performance. It’s also a rare chance to talk to other teams from across the EV landscape about the real-world experience and challenges of driving over long distances where we can share valuable knowledge, ideas, hints and tips.
As longstanding participants of the Rally, how have you seen the challenge evolve over the years?
We are proud to have been the EV Rally Roadside Assistance Partner since the series first began in 2021, the same year as the International Climate Change Conference (COP26). Each year, the routes change, as do the participating teams helping to showcase the potential of a whole spectrum of EV vehicles, from cars through to trucks, in both urban and rural areas. The rally has done a lot to dispel myths about driving EVs as well as being a platform for knowledge sharing. As the EV transition gets underway for businesses, we’re all about creating confidence around the transition.
We’ve already been on the Europa Rally this year, which gave us the opportunity to see how the UK transition is going compared to Europe, as well as witnessing how differing governments are rolling out EV infrastructure. We were impressed by how well charge posts were signposted on the continent and pleased too to see that the UK government has recognised how vital signage is in building confidence in the availability of charging infrastructure in the UK.
This year the focus is less on miles travelled and more on innovation and clean energy. How important is innovation in the EV narrative?
Innovation is vital in widening access to EVs, whether via innovation in funding or through practical steps such as kerbside charging, to help to bring down the perceived barriers to EVs. The EV journey is very connected to the renewable energy journey, and there continues to be innovation in the vehicle-to-grid space that will help to further bring the total cost of ownership down. We are looking forward to exploring the future of mobility when we visit Cenex Expo 2025 during the Explorer Rally where the focus will be on Net Zero and Connected Automated Mobility.
Will you be doing anything different this year?
We’ll be bringing our most advanced vehicles to see how they perform and looking at how the EV transition can work for businesses. Many of the organisations we work with are at different stages of their journey. We’re also launching a yellow paper on the theme of Bridge to EV in October that will incorporate insights from this year’s rally, as well as looking at the wider ambition of decarbonising fleets through more efficient planning and driving and an exploration of the full spectrum of decarbonisation technologies.
Please tell us about your team - who is driving and in what vehicles?
Our rally vehicles for ‘Explorer’ will be the new all-electric Ford Capri and a vehicle selected from one of our newest OEM customers, which will be announced shortly. We have a team of both experienced and new EV Rally drivers this year, as well as our two amazing Patrols of the Year, all coming together to make up our team from both The AA and Drivetech.
You're also joining the Rally as its Roadside Assistance Partner. Can you tell us what this means and how teams will benefit?
We are often described as the event’s comfort blanket and once again, this year, we will be providing support for all the vehicles involved in the rally should they need it - if they have a puncture for example. In our experience, the cars don’t run out of charge, but we can help with that too in the unlikely event that it happens.
Please tell us about the AA’s future plans?
The AA continues to invest in AI and predictive technologies such as Vixa Pro to reduce costly vehicle off-road time. We’ll also continue to work to with technology partners to decarbonise our own fleet, with our award-winning concept recovery fleet already demonstrating that it is possible to use electric trucks to recover vehicles. For customers and their drivers, we’re continuing to increase access to digital interfaces to make it easier to report incidents and get help. We’re also continuing to lobby on behalf of fleets and their drivers to improve safe and affordable access to EVs for all.
About Duncan Webb, Fleet Director, The AA
Duncan boasts a wealth of experience in both operating and supplying services to the fleet industry, with a notable track record of overseeing some of the UK's largest and most intricate fleets such as Royal Mail and BT. With over 25 years of industry expertise, Duncan has experience as both an operator and a supply across the fleet sector. Responsible for managing the AA’s famous yellow roadside fleet, as well as its specialist vehicles, recovery trucks, driving school and company car fleet, Duncan is a regular commentator on transport topics across the media.