Why electric car revolution might run out of road - John Redwood

More than a quarter of electric charging points in this Yorkshire city are broken

The whole EU has embarked on a huge top down reform of the motor industry, seeking to transform it from a range of vehicles based on modern low-emission diesels and petrol vehicles to one based on new electric cars.

Yorkshire firms can drive an electric car or van- for free

So far in most countries, including the UK, customers have not been impressed by the electric cars on offer, so their market share languishes around three to four per cent of the total market, with under one per cent of the total stock electric. Meanwhile threats of more bans and taxes to come have put many people off buying a new conventional car at all.

We cannot use electric cars without charges – Yorkshire Post letters

There seem to be several worries that people have about electric vehicles.

The first is range.

Plugging into the future – what is it like to drive an electric car around Leeds?

Present electric cars have varied ranges from say 70 miles to perhaps 200.

A modern diesel or petrol car has a reliable range of more than 400 miles or up to four times as much as the electric substitute.

People are particularly worried about range on an electric car given the issues over the time it takes to charge them and access to charging points.

A petrol or diesel car does not induce range anxiety because there are so many filling stations available.

You pass them on most journeys. It takes less than five minutes to fill and pay and regain full range again.

In contrast it may take hours to recharge a battery car, with fast partial charges taking maybe 30 minutes once you have access to a fast charge point.

If you want to do a 400-mile journey in an electric car, it will take considerably longer than in a petrol or diesel which can get there on a single tank of fuel, given the need to stop off more than once to recharge the battery.

People also worry about battery life. There are manufacturers that will guarantee a battery for 60,000 miles or even for 100,000 miles, but doubts linger about the possibility that a large and expensive battery will require replacing well before the engine and vehicle are 
in need of replacement or major overhaul.

A battery deteriorates, making it more difficult to recharge and undermining its power delivery and therefore range of the vehicle before the owner gives in and buys a new one or before the manufacturer agrees the battery needs replacement.

Some worry about the green impact of these machines. How will the state require people to dispose of or recycle the metals used in the manufacture of the battery? How much energy is used in the manufacture of the vehicle and its battery?

Some think governments will turn to taxing the electric car once more are bought, as they will miss the large revenue streams that come from Vehicle Excise Duty and fuel tax on conventional vehicles.

People are naturally distrustful of governments offering low tax and subsidy just to get people started.

It is true the electric car will stop all exhaust particulate emissions, which is good news.

Increasingly, however, particulates come from tyre wear and brake pad use, not from exhaust emission given the big work done to clean up the back of a diesel. Electric cars will still generate tyre and brake particles.

How long will it be before there are electric cars that a majority of the car buying public want to buy? What will they look like and how will their specification be different from today? How much will people be willing to pay for one, as some current models are dear?

John Redwood is a Conservative MP and former Cabinet Minister. He writes a daily blog which can be found at johnredwoodsdiary.com