Speed bumps have emerged in the ACT government's goal of making all its fleet vehicles electric

The latest ACT Auditor-General's report into the government's vehicle emission reduction activities has found vehicle range and recharging anxiety is as much of a genuine concern among public servants as it is among the wider driving public.

The auditor found the speed of the planned government fleet transition to electric vehicles had suffered as a result, with the commitment to lease only electric vehicles after July 1, 2020 slowing as older combustion cars kept lingering on.

"In the first six months of 2021 there are emerging vehicle leasing patterns that need closer examination," the auditor found.

"A larger percentage of lease extensions than usual is being entered into (rather than new leases), and a larger percentage of plug-in hybrids is [sic] being leased (rather than battery electric vehicles)."

As a result, the auditor has recommended a review of the transition, including looking at usage patterns across the fleet.

It has also recommended any directorates which don't toe the line on the transition plan should have their vehicle exemptions authorised by their director-general.

The ACT government has around 1800 vehicles on its fleet, including 585 passenger vehicles and 451 buses.

The older diesel buses are the biggest emitters on the government fleet and expressions of interest have been sought from prospective suppliers of 90 new electric buses in the next three years.

ACT Greens spokesperson for transport Jo Clay is also developing a plan whereby the next contract for garbage collection in the territory requires some or all of the trucks to be electric. The city of Fremantle, in Western Australia, is already trialling electric garbage trucks.

Under the latest Greens-Labor power-sharing agreement, 50 new public recharging stations are planned for the ACT, with a master plan for that roll-out still under development.

But the auditor has found the government's participation in that roll-out has been uncoordinated, with its new state-of-the-art office buildings in Civic and Dickson initially not installed with charging stations. Just two dedicated charging stations are now available at each of the new offices when clearly there would be a need for many more.

"This was a missed opportunity," the auditor said.

"Work is in hand to address the immediate and medium term shortfall in the overall number of car parking spaces with chargers in each building."

The report also found dedicated electric vehicle parking and access "was not given equal priority" among the teams involved in the plan's roll-out and important elements, such as public signage indicating zero emission vehicles could use transit lanes, was not done in a timely way.

The report outlined how $3.03 million had been set aside to "discretely resource" the Transition to Zero Emissions Vehicles Action Plan 2018-21, with a further $2.13 million committed in the February this year to accelerate the plan.

The report found "complexity and risks" in the fleet transition, and suggested "periodic reappraisal" of the program's logic, as well as a robust evaluation process.

Under the latest Greens-Labor agreement, "at least 50" new electric vehicle recharging stations are to be built across Canberra and the region, with a reverse auction for their construction during 2021-22.

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