The 100% electric Renault Twizy is helping to preserve one of the most beautiful and popular tourist destinations in the UK as part of an innovative scheme that provides visitors to the Lake District with an unforgettable and environmentally-compatible way to experience the beautiful region.

The vehicles are a core component of the ‘See More’ programme, being delivered in partnership by Cumbria County Council, The Lake District National Park Authority and Cumbria Tourism, which is committed to enhancing visitor transport services in addition to reducing the impact of travel on the local environment. The scheme includes ten Renault Twizys that are available to hire from eight different locations in Keswick and Ullswater.

The Twizy provides tourists with the ideal vehicle in which to explore the area and offers the peace of mind that their visit will have the minimum impact on the environment’s outstanding beauty and its road network. The Twizy’s silent running also ensures that engine noise won’t effect the environment or tourists’ sightseeing experience.

The scheme is designed to appeal to motorhome owners staying at local campsites, providing an alternative to taking their vehicles into more confined areas and doing away with the need to tow an additional, more manoeuvrable car that can be used for sightseeing.  

Already one of the most eye-catching vehicles around, the two-seat Twizys have been made even more distinctive with a sheep livery. Each has also been named in traditional dialect (a mix of Westmorland and Cumberland numbers). To provide a level of protection against the elements, all of the Twizys have been specified with optional scissor doors and windows.

On the launch of the Twizy scheme, Nicola Parker, Programme Manager for Cumbria Tourism’s See More programme, said, “This new flock of electric Twizys are all about offering visitors a fun, quirky way to experience the unique Lake District landscape – particularly at a time when we need to show visitors that it is still well and truly business as usual after the recent floods. The sheep theme is synonymous with the region, so what better way of helping passengers get up close and personal with nature and really savour everything that makes the Lakes so special.”

Ben Fletcher, Electric Vehicle Product Manager, Groupe Renault UK, said, “Twizy presents a really fun and unique way to travel and is ideal for making the most of a trip to an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, its ease of use and versatile charging system meaning that it is equally at home in rural areas as it is in the city. By opting for one of the Twizys, visitors to the Lake District can enjoy the scenery in a relaxing and very quiet way with the reassurance that their decision to not use their own vehicle is helping to preserve the local landscape for others to enjoy for many years to come.”  

The Twizys, with their traditional dialect names in brackets below, are available to hire on an hourly, half day or full day basis from: 

• Hazel Bank Country House, Borrowdale (Yan)
• Castlerigg Hall Caravan & Camping Park, Keswick (Tyan)
• Keswick Brewing Company (Tethera)
• FSC Blencathra Centre, Threlkeld (Methera and Pip)
• The Quiet Site, Watermillock (Sethera and Lethera)
• Hillcroft Park, Pooley Bridge (Dovera)
• Waterfoot Park, Pooley Bridge (Hovera)
• Wayfarers Independent Hostel, Penrith (Dec)

To find out more about the scheme, visit Co-Wheels.

Twizy is the world’s first mass market fully-electric compact two-seater. Silent, with snug tandem seating, the vehicle is the perfect mode of transport for visitors to fully experience the beauty of such areas as the Lake District. With zero emissions in use; Twizy is powered by a 17hp electric motor with a smooth one-speed automatic transmission and a light and compact lithium-ion battery pack. Twizy has a top speed of 50 mph and the model’s official ECE -15 UTAC range is up to 56 miles – Renault estimates that in real-world driving conditions that this equates to around 43 miles in warmer weather and 31 miles in winter conditions.

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