A new electric car-sharing system at EPFL
© 2013 EPFL
The Tellis company is launching a new electric car-sharing system on the campuses of the Lausanne Hotel School (EHL) and the Lausanne Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), institutions that are resolutely committed in favor of sustainable development. Fourteen electric cars will be made available to students, staff, visitors and the neighborhood of both schools. Tellis has already deployed a first network of the kind, known as “Electriceasy”, in the canton of Jura.
Enjoying rapid growth, the two Lausanne universities are multiplying initiatives to manage their environmental impact, of which mobility makes up a significant part. It is therefore essential for both schools to encourage their users to choose the greenest and most community-oriented modes of transport. Entrusted with a mission of innovation, the universities intend to fulfill their exemplary role by supporting novel projects. That is what led them to choose the Jura-based company Tellis. Managements of both institutions have undertaken to make the parking spaces, as well as the computer and electric network, available for free. For its part, Tellis will equip the seven stations with recharging and booking units, and operate the fourteen cars (Citroën C-Zero electric models), through a web service and a telephone hotline. EPFL has set up six stations for two vehicles close to Mobility parking spaces, and a seventh station will be set up at the Swiss Tech Convention Center at the end of 2013.
“Electriceasy” offers a technologically highly sophisticated electric car-sharing system, both regarding the energy chain and the information systems. It is thus possible to book the vehicle, either through the unit or the Internet, and use it within five minutes, safe in the knowledge that the car will always be fully charged on taking possession. Students and staff will be able to use the service thanks to their personal identification badge. The hourly invoicing system (at a rate of 8 francs/hour) offers the users great simplicity. From an ecological viewpoint, both EHL and EPFL will allocate to the network renewable electricity of certified origin, generated by their own power facilities.
About Tellis SA (Electriceasy operator)
In 2011, Tellis SA introduced the world's first concept of electric car-sharing booking/hire units that are public and without subscription. The company was founded by Jura-based manufacturer, Pascal Bourquard. It first set up the system across all towns in the canton of Jura, meeting with great success. It is continuing to deploy its network over the whole of the French-speaking part of Switzerland and is establishing itself as a leader in the green mobility market. Electriceasy has established partnership relationships with the Vaudois company Green Motion that produces and sets up the recharging units at the stations.
