Motability Operations, the UK’s largest car leasing company, has presented a wheelchair-accessible electric demonstration vehicle to encourage manufacturers to ensure that wheelchair users are also included in the transition to EVs.
Plans to market such an electric wheelchair-accessible vehicle (eWAV) are not yet concrete. But in cooperation with South Korean auto giant Kia, Motability Operations developed a wheelchair-accessible variant of the PV5.
The model will be on display for the first time at the FT Future of the Car summit, which runs through May 15 in London.
Collaboration with Callum design
The car, called eVITA, was designed and assembled in Britain in collaboration with the Callum design studio in Warwick.
This studio, founded by renowned automotive designer Ian Callum and his colleagues, focuses on creating bespoke and limited-edition vehicles.
Ian Callum is well-known for his work at Jaguar, where he served as Director of Design for many years, shaping iconic models like the Jaguar F-Type and the Jaguar I-PACE. However, his studio is focusing on several projects, including this partnership with Motability Operations, to address the obstacles wheelchair users face with existing EVs.
What’s more: Motability Operations is sharing the innovative design work with car manufacturers for free to enable faster production or conversion of WAVs and to include accessibility from the outset of the design process, or even at the heart of all vehicle design.
Reconfigured battery layout
Key features of the concept vehicle include a reconfigured battery layout to enable wheelchair access, with a low-angle rear ramp integrated into the electric tailgate, raised windows that reduce motion sickness, a panoramic glass roof that creates more light in the vehicle, and a design that allows wheelchair users to sit closer to the driver, fostering a safer and more social journey.
Other features are a flat internal floor to support wheelchair stability and ease of movement inside the vehicle, and a rear projection lamp, to signal the presence and needs of a passenger when the car is parked, improving safety when entering and exiting the vehicle.
Demand will increase
According to Motability Operations, with Europe’s aging population and more attention paid to policy mandates for the disabled, demand for eWAVs will only increase.
In the UK alone, for example, 1.2 million wheelchair users are at risk of falling behind with the transition due to the phasing out of ICE vehicles.
According to Motability Operations, analysis also shows a European market for about 40,000 new WAVS per year. Add in markets in Japan, Canada, Australia, South Korea, and New Zealand, and you arrive at an additional 20,000 cars.
Concerns about access to the public charging network
Motability Operations currently has 35,000 WAVs in its fleet. Through the Motability Scheme, people receiving a qualifying disability allowance can choose an affordable and accessible vehicle.
Some 72% of Motability customers have also expressed concerns about the accessibility of the public charging network for EVs. Meanwhile, the Motability Foundation has partnered with the UK government to sponsor an accessibility standard for public charging stations, and is advocating that the standard be made mandatory.
