Travel services company WeKnowGroup has today announced a landmark deal with Heathrow which means it will have a fleet of up to 200 fully electric Jaguar i-Paces available for passengers to travel to and from the airport.
The deal will create what is believed to be the largest chauffeur-driven fleet of electric vehicles in the UK and support Heathrow’s commitment to improving air quality around the airport. To support the service, WeKnowGroup will be installing a dedicated charging hub at Heathrow, which will be one of the largest in the UK.
The agreement extends WeKnowGroup’s decades-long, unique relationship with Heathrow where it operates arrivals desks in all terminals, under the name WeKnowLondon, which provides travellers with onward transport and a broad range of other services including entertainment, accommodation, tours, attractions, and telecoms products.
WeKnowLondon provides an average 250 private hire car journeys per day for passengers arriving at Heathrow, with plans to double this with the introduction of the new i-Pace fleet.
The deal will mean an initial fleet of 50 Jagaur i-Paces will be available in Summer 2018, with the option to add a further 150 cars over the next 12 months. This fleet will support up to 1,000 electric vehicle journeys from Heathrow each day – saving over 8 tonnes of nitrogen dioxide emissions every year. Designed and engineered by Jaguar Land Rover in the UK, the all-electric i-Pace carries a state-of-the-art 90kWh Lithium-ion battery and is capable of a range of 480km.
Peter Buchanan, CEO, WeKnowGroup said, “This agreement brings together two iconic British brands – Heathrow and Jaguar – and ourselves, an ambitious British SME to lead the way in EV adoption, improving air quality and supporting the UK economy. The deal is a significant step change in our successful, decades-long relationship with Heathrow where we operate arrivals desks in all terminals, to assist thousands of travellers every year. Today’s agreement also extends our deep, long-standing relationship with Jaguar which has allowed us to proudly claim that we run the largest chauffeured executive Jaguar fleet in the UK.
“By moving to the i-Pace, we can not only continue to offer our customers the chance to travel in style in an iconic British car brand but also ensure that we are helping Heathrow meet its commitments to the environment and the local community.”
Emma Gilthorpe, Executive Director of Expansion at Heathrow, said “We are thrilled to be working with two British companies on this landmark initiative to support more sustainable transportation choices for our passengers.
“Our commitments to the environment and our local community are absolutely non-negotiable – we are determined to address the impact road vehicles have on our neighbours and to improve air quality on our roads. These i-Paces are the latest in a long line of initiatives we are taking to ensure that expansion is not a choice between the economy and the environment – and that we can deliver benefits for both.”
