Mission accomplished: From London to Oslo in <80 hours in an EV

An 80 hour rally from London to Oslo solely with electric vehicles has been completed successfully. Initiated by E-mobility NSR, the EU funded INTERREG project in the North Sea Region, co-organised with its local partners and endorsed by 80 Day Race, this rally demonstrated that e-mobility across nations is possible.

The start of the race was held in London, following after an event in the prestigious Reform Club. This setting was chosen because it was the starting point of Phileas Fogg, main character in the 1873 Jules Verne novel 'Around the world in 80 Days', betting that new means of transportation make it possible to achieve this challenge. At that time, steam powered vehicles were about to replace horses. Today, we are facing another tipping point in history with the first mass market electric vehicles being available to substitute traditional means of transportation.

In the Reform Club, Robert Llewellyn, actor, comedian, writer and UK's premier e-mobility specialist, placed a bet against Professor Stuart Cole, Emeritus Professor of Transport, Wales Transport Research Centre at the University of Glamorgan that Oslo could be reached within 80 hours. Mr Llewellyn won this bet after Frank Manders of 80 Day Race completed the 2201 kilometre journey from London to Oslo with a Tesla Model S in 78 hours and 14 minutes. Dutch e-mobility promoter NL|Mobility was the second Dutch team to complete the mission.

The overall campaign focused on issues that NSR E-Mobility research identified as potential challenges to cross-border electric driving, such as the gaps between charge points and the conve­nience of their design and location. The practical findings feed into a survey of the charge point infrastructure that connects the project countries around the North Sea Region (NSR): Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Netherland, United Kingdom, Norway and Sweden. Finally, the results of the live rally will inform an ongoing appraisal of the existing challenges to cross-border electric driving, such as the gaps between charge points and the convenience of their design and location, to foster the search for transnational solutions.

· You can find the full press release by 80DR here.
· Watch a short TV clip on German TV, show of Monday 14/4, min 9:42 onwards:
http://www.hamburg.sat1regional.de/sendungen-hh.html
· Read tweets from actors and followers of the rally here: "EV-Rally London-Oslo".
· Press coverage from Denmark (see last two pictures)