Politicians test electric-powered car

For the next three months, councillors Roger Stone and Jahangir Akhtar will have use of the Toyota Prius Plug-In while they are carrying out local authority business.

Coun Stone, the leader of the council, is currently heading up an initiative on behalf of Local Government Yorkshire and Humber to promote the use of electric-powered vehicles by local authorities in their commercial fleets.

He said: “Rotherham has been leading the way in looking at electric vehicles.

“It will be very interesting to see how the vehicle performs over the next three months, giving the authority the opportunity to gain a valuable insight into electric vehicles and evaluating whether there are opportunities to look at using them more widely as part of our transport arrangements.

“Alternative energy sources cannot be ignored, particularly by local authorities who are faced with ever-increasing budget pressures, and I am very proud that Rotherham is taking the lead.

“Hopefully, we will provide the spark for other authorities and businesses.”