Ford to Test Plug-In Hybrid Vans in London

Ford Motor Co. says it will begin a year-long pilot program this autumn in London to test 20 Transit Custom plug-in hybrid vans.

The carmaker previously said it would begin commercial sales of the plug-in Transit in Europe in 2019. There are no plans to sell the vehicle in the U.S.

The London program is partially funded by a £4.7 million ($5.8 million) grant from the U.K.’s Advanced Propulsion Center. Under the initiative, Ford will build the test vans at its Dunton, U.K., facility and provide them to several commercial fleet groups, including Transport of London.

The trial fleet will operate in everyday use throughout the city. A telematics system will be used to collect data on the vehicles’ financial, operational and environmental performance.

Ford says the hybrid vans will have a pure electric range of about 31 miles. The company expects the vehicles to operate primarily in electric mode during routine city driving and switch to the combustion engine for longer trips.

Commercial vehicles make 280,000 trips per day in London, racking up a combined 8 million miles, according to Ford. Vans account for 75% of peak freight traffic.

Ford previously has said it will invest $4.5 billion to launch 13 electrified vehicles worldwide by 2020. In addition to the Transit plug-in, the company is developing hybrid versions of the Mustang pony car and F-150 pickup truck, an all-electric small crossover and an unspecified self-driving hybrid.