Who We Are

The Light Electric Vehicle Education and Research (LEVER) Initiative is a consortium of Light Electric Vehicle (LEV) researchers and educators that currently includes faculty and staff from University of Tennessee, Portland State University, and Monash University. LEVER started in 2014 to bring together some of the leading researchers in the field to collectively answer some of the biggest questions related to these emerging vehicles.  

Our Misson

The mission of the LEVER is to bring a collective focus through interdisciplinary research directed at LEV adoption, system integration, societal impacts, and related policy. UTK's LEVER center will initiate the formation an international cooperative research center on LEVs, bridging academia, industry, government, and non-government organizations

What are LEVs?

  • New class of vehicles – most LEVs are electric two-wheelers, but many three- and four-wheelers are being developed
  • > 150 million sold in last 10 years
  • Low speed EV
  • In US., most are not classified by FMVSS
  • Different performance characteristics than internal combustion counterparts