16 April 2009
Cautious welcome for government's electric cars announcement
Transform Scotland have given a cautious welcome to today's announcement by the UK Government of its new strategy on electric cars '
Ultra-Low Carbon Vehicles in the UK'.
Director Colin Howden said:
"Electric cars have an important role to play in weaning the transport sector from its overwhelming over-dependence on oil. The transport sector is 98% dependent on oil - and, with Britain's status as an oil exporter long gone, the country becomes more and more dependent on oil imports every day."Electric cars also have other benefits, such their much lower levels of air and noise pollution. But people shouldn't be led to believe that electric cars can in themselves solve our many transport problems. Electric cars still crash, and they occupy as much space as do cars powered by internal combustion. And, from the perspective of meeting climate change targets, it would certainly be folly to replace cars powered by oil with electric cars powered by energy from coal-fired power stations."What will be interesting to see is if the UK Government also intends to press ahead in next week's Budget with plans to pay £2000 for car users to buy new cars. It would surely undermine a £2000-5000 subsidy for electric car purchase, unavailable until 2011, if car users can take advantage - now - of a £2000 subsidy for buying cars still based on the internal combustion engine. If the Government is wise, it will only make scrappage fees available for car users willing to trade in old cars for new cars that at least meet the EU average emissions target (130g/km)."