Danish energy company Trefor has developed a small, electric cargo vehicle for businesses operating in urban areas. Described as “in between a car and a scooter,” the Tripl is a three-wheeled (two at the front, one at the back) tricycle with a 750-litre storage area at the front that is driven in a similar manner to a motorcycle.
The firm is planning to introduce it to the UK market with a lease cost in the region of £160 per month.
Powered by a 4kW electric motor driving the rear wheel, it has a top speed of 28mph, a 62-mile range and a 200kg payload.
Trefor is primarily targeting final-mile delivery fleets working in cities, as sales director Steen Laursen told BusinessCar: “It’s designed for urban transportation in city centres, where you have to drive, stop and park a van. It can replace a van – not in terms of cargo volume but in terms of agility; it’s easier to drive, easier to pass cars and easier to stop.
“A van stops less than five times per hour in a city centre but the Tripl stops more than 10 times per hour, so it’s double the efficiency.”
The firm is also appealing to housing associations, municipalities and businesses with off-road operations.
“They can use it like a service van,” added Laursen. “[Businesses] can have tools, instruments or spare parts in the trunk, which is lockable. Then they drive to where the service has to be done, which could be in front of flats, the zoo, a park, on a construction site – anywhere where you have to drive on paths or non-road areas and [directly] to the spot where you carry out the service.
“It can be operated in tunnels too; it’s going to be used in a new tunnel connecting Denmark and Germany, so there are indoor and outdoor applications.”
The Tripl has yet to go on sale in the UK as Trefor is currently “establishing a spare parts centre, dealerships and leasing partners”. However, the company has a “non-signed agreement” with Leaseplan in Denmark and is expected to offer the vehicle via the UK arm of the leasing giant when it arrives in Britain.
“[It will cost] 199 Euros per month from Leaseplan [in mainland Europe] and something like £159 a month for the UK market,” said Laursen.
He added that Trefor had already approached “bigger logistics companies such as Amazon, Zalando and some auto parts distributors,” about the adding the vehicles to their fleets.
