When Norm Proctor’s taxi company in Simcoe, Ont., bought its first electric car in 2021, it was just an experiment.
Now Why Wait Taxi runs an all-electric fleet of passenger vehicles, and Proctor says the switch is saving the business hundreds of thousands of dollars a year versus its former gas-powered fleet.
“We were spending tons on fuel and maintenance,” said Proctor. “We bought a Hyundai Kona EV that December, just to see the difference [from a gas-powered car].
“We liked it. We ended up buying another one about six months later.”
The company – co-owned by Chris Lafond – has now spent a full year with no gas or hybrid vehicles at all, with its cars covering about 90,000 kilometres a month. Proctor said the company needs only 11 or 12 on the road but keeps spares because of the lower range in the cold, keeping a couple vehicles charged to use when needed.
He estimates the fleet used to burn through about $25,000 a month in gas. Now, the company pays between $2,500 and $3,000 a month for electricity, including for its building.
Maintenance costs have fallen just as sharply.
“We’ve had repairs, but nothing like what we used to average, around $80,000 to $100,000 a year in gas car repairs,” said Proctor. “Now we’re maybe $20,000 including tires, everything all in.”
He said the company has put on just three sets of brakes in four years of running electric cars. That’s with more than one million kilometres of total fleet driving each year.
Early on, its drivers charged on the road at public stations, which Proctor said weren’t conveniently located nor cost-effective. So the company moved its office from downtown Simcoe to an industrial area where every car can charge indoors.
It now has seven Level 2 chargers and one Level 3 fast charger. Cars are plugged in whenever they need it, but most charging is done overnight, when electricity rates in Ontario are lowest.
Proctor usually keeps each car for about four years. Its oldest, a 2022 model, has about 270,000 kilometres on it with no significant battery wear, he said, and the company plans to run it until it stops to see how long it lasts.
Some of the company’s older drivers still struggle with range anxiety, but both Proctor and Lafond have spent time educating the drivers on range and charging, and the drivers have become more accepting.
“It’s something you’ve got to learn as you go,” he says. “Like you learn cell phones, you’ve just got to try it.”
As for passengers, he said a lot of them “don’t even notice” they’re riding in an electric vehicle.
Proctor’s recommendation to other fleets is to test the vehicles first and make up your own mind if they fit your needs. “Have the people that are running your business drive them,” he says.
“We’ve run a lot of these, I believe we’re well over 20 now. We’ve never had major issues with any of them.”
His ultimate advice, however, is to just jump into electrification. With the sharp reduction in expenses and vehicle reliability, Proctor doesn’t feel any need to go back to gas.
“To be honest, I think every cab company should be doing this.”
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