Electrifying Music Festival Transport.

For music festival entities their sustainability credentials are an essential part of their ethos in the way they operate their events. Transport to and from a festival site is still considered a major contributing factor to an event’s overall carbon footprint. In an effort to reduce the impact of this organisers are looking at more ways to electrify all festival related transport.

There are various ways that festival organisers can increase use of electric powered vehicles including public, private and on-site transport. This is often not a simple choice because of numerous challenges that include costs, vehicle availability, infrastructure and technological limitations. There are also a number of sustainable alternative options which can make the situation more complex. How can organisers move towards electrifying their transport without incurring huge costs and inconvenience. 

Sustainable Transport for Music Festivals. 
Music festival entities have been using greener transport options for many years including electric vehicles where they have control and the costs have been minimal. Historically this has been limited to on-site mobility to move supplies and people around a site using bicycles and electric golf carts for example. External electric transport options have only been a serious consideration in the last five years as the market and infrastructure for public and private EVs has developed. It may now be at the stage where organisers can consider on-site infrastructure support for private EVs and contracts with public transport companies offering EV options. 

Public Transport Options. 
The introduction of electric buses and coaches is mainly limited to European and North American regions heavily incentivised by government subsidies and initiatives. They are popular in urban areas where a good support infrastructure exists and distances are shorter. Longer travel between cities is becoming more popular as the technology develops and EV buses and coaches start achieving ranges of up to 500km making them a viable option for transporting festival-goers from urban areas to remote festival sites. The shorter range urban electric buses are regularly used currently to shuttle festival-goers from local train stations to festival sites for example. Privately run coach companies are currently looking at introducing more electrically powered vehicles for long distance travel but the investments can be high and requires a charging infrastructure than includes battery swaps for faster turnarounds at destinations. 

Private Transport Options. 
The market for private EVs is growing fast with most European countries achieving a penetration in excess of 12% of all new vehicles sold but this number varies enormously from country to country depending on government incentives, costs and the charging infrastructure in place. Many organisers have started introducing incentives like free and VIP parking for EVs used by festival-goers. Some organisers have also introduced temporary charging points on festival sites but it is likely that demand will always exceed supply and there is also the question of how that temporary charging station is powered? 

Festival Site Mobility and Infrastructure. 
Many organisers implement strict mobility policies for festival sites during the live dates not allowing use of any ICE vehicles. A site can be large so staff and volunteers can usually get access to bicycles and electric scooters to get around a site. For supplies like food and beverages or movement of waste many organisers utilise electric golf carts which can also be useful for transporting crews and artists around a site. These site restrictions benefit everyone on the festival site with low noise and zero pollutants being emitted. Golf carts and electric scooters usually only need a low-level trickle charge when not in use which means they can utilise solar or wind turbine powered charging stations. Providing charging stations for festival-goer's EVs can be more challenging due to the significant power required to charge them. Latest innovations have seen hydrogen powered electricity generators being used at some music festivals which means that the process retains zero emission status. If charging stations are using diesel or biofuel generators it can negate the purpose of using EVs at all. 

Challenges. 
The overall charging infrastructure both off site and on site can be a challenge for users of EVs given the current range limitations. Any temporary charging station on a festival site needs to generate power from green energy which can be difficult. Long range coaches are still considering hydrogen as a fuel option which provides longer ranges and a faster turnaround (no charging required) and is the preferred option for the long-haul truck industry who find electric battery vehicles do not fit with their logistical requirements. Transport companies often install hydrogen tanks in their depots and hubs for rapid refueling. For many festival-goers insisting on the convenience and low cost of using a private car there are still significant costs to consider in switching to an EV. It is likely that for the majority of budget conscious festival-goers the range anxiety and costs involved outweigh the benefits. 

For festival organisers planning their next events using a software management platform like Festival Pro gives them all the functionality they need manage every aspect of their event logistics. The guys who are responsible for this software have been in the front line of event management for many years and the features are built from that experience and are performance artists themselves. The Festival Pro platform is easy to use and has comprehensive features with specific modules for managing artists, contractors, venues/stages, vendors, volunteers, sponsors, guestlists, ticketing, site planning, cashless payments and contactless ordering.

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