Electric cars could play a major role in the shift toenvironmentally friendly transport, the government will reveal thisweek. As part of its long-awaited renewable energy strategy, to bepublished on Thursday, it will argue that there is massive potential inthe UK for plug-in hybrids, for car batteries charged on gridelectricity and for vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells.Theproposal is part of a £100bn scheme to reinvigorate Britain`s flaggingplans for cutting emissions of carbon dioxide. Developing cars to runon electricity is important because their energy can be derived fromrenewable energy sources, the strategy points out.In Israel,which is developing a flourishing electric car industry, there areplans for solar energy to provide the power for charging batteries torun electric vehicles. In the UK, wind or wave generators would beused. `Fossil fuels are going to run out; we`re going to haveto be driving electric vehicles,` said Robert Evans, chief executive ofCenex, a government-backed organisation that aims to introducelow-carbon vehicle technology. `This is such an innovative idea it hascaught a high level of imagination across the sector. If the motorindustry invests in it, it has a real potential to move quicker thanmarket forces might otherwise dictate.`Cars currently generateabout 20 per cent of the planet`s output of carbon dioxide. Cuttingthat figure would have a big effect on climate change. Electric carscan also use energy to charge batteries at night when demand on thenational grid is low.Local councils, including Westminster,Camden and Islington in London, have already set up a small number ofcharging points for private electric cars. Evans said interest wasgrowing owing to a combination of incentives, such as free parking,exemption from the congestion charge in London and the recent rises inthe price of petrol.Another trial, run by Mercedes, hasdistributed all-electric, two-seater Smart cars. The first weredelivered to Coventry City Council last December with a view to testingthem in urban situations for four years. They can be plugged into themains and run for 70 miles at up to 60mph on a full charge. `The aim isto get the data from various trials then make a decision about aproduction version,` said a spokesman for Mercedes. `We want to see howthe battery performs in real-life situations and what sort of usagepatterns these cars have.`Another scheme is Project BetterPlace, which is backed by Silicon Valley entrepreneur Shia Agassi. Hiscompany has raised £100m so far to set up a network of charging andbattery-exchange stations in Israel by 2010. The cars, being developedby Renault-Nissan, are expected to have a range of 140 miles on a fullcharge with a top speed of 68mph. The first few thousand carsshould be operating within the system by next year and the aim is toput a further 10,000 into the scheme each month in 2010. The cars canbe charged or flat batteries can be replaced with a charged one.However,Geoff Callow, managing director of Turquoise Engineering Consulting,which designs low-carbon technologies for cars, said electric cars willhave a future for short journeys within cities, but are not fit forgeneral purposes: `You certainly can`t tow your caravan on holiday fora fortnight.`Current ideas · The first electric carriage was invented by Scottish businessman Robert Anderson in the 1830s. ·Electric cars were made by Edison, Studebaker and others in the early20th century and successfully sold as town cars to upper-classcustomers and as vehicles suitable for women drivers due to theirclean, quiet and easy operation.· General Motors introduced a range of battery-powered cars, including the Electrovair in 1966 and the Electrovette.· In 1985 Clive Sinclair`s C5 one-seater electric tricycle is ridiculed in the press and fails to entice buyers.·Since the late 1980s, electric vehicles have been promo
www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/jun/22/travelandtransport.carbonemissions