Is the future electric?

Proctor writes that "there are still major obstacles blocking the mass de-carbonisation of the car – problems of technology, cost, and infrastructure. Just as important, a major, urgent overhaul of transport and fiscal policies will be needed if the pioneering efforts of a few companies are to convert the automotive industry to electricity on a scale that impacts significantly on oil demand."

In our Burning Issue, transport and fiscal policies have not yet been mentioned. Proctor illustrates why adapting these could be of great importance: "For many governments, aiding investment in new electric transport infrastructure could coincide with falling revenues from transport fuel taxes. The Society of Motor Manufacturers says duty on automotive fuels accounted for £23.3bn of UK government revenues three years ago, representing over two-thirds of the entire total of green tax revenues. VAT charged on fuel on top of that has since been inflated by recent oil price hikes.

That tax revenue will have to be replaced. It’s hard to tax electricity for transport differently from electricity metered for domestic consumption, so a shift towards taxing vehicle ownership and infrastructure use is predicted – but only after enough buyers have been seduced by electric cars with green tax incentives and low fuel costs."

Read the entire article here:

• Is the future electric?

Join our Burning Issue debate here:

• The Burning Issue 2: Electric vehicles headed for a breakthrough or the dustbin?