petrol price for october

Yep, it’s the petrol pump stock photo of doom again… (Pixabay)

Electric Driving Only: Britain to ban sale of petrol and diesel cars

Clean driving for all might be coming a lot sooner than we thought.

petrol price for october

Yep, it’s the petrol pump stock photo of doom again… (Pixabay)

Britain has announced that they have taken the decision to ban the sale of diesel and petrol cars starting from 2040. The ban comes as part of the Government’s plan to clean up the country’s air.

U.K. environment secretary Michael Gove says that things simply have to change.

“We can’t carry on with diesel and petrol cars,” U.K. environment secretary Michael Gove told the BBC on Wednesday. “There is no alternative to embracing new technology.”

CNN reports that almost 2.7 million new cars were registered in the UK in 2016. This makes it the second biggest car market in Europe after Germany.

So, will they actually be able to achieve the 2040 deadline? It looks like it’s going to be very, very difficult. British demand for electric and fuel cell cars, as well as plug-in hybrids, grew 40% in 2015, but they only accounted for less than 3% of the market.

Although it will be difficult, David Bailey, a professor of industrial strategy at Aston Business School,  says that “clean” cars are still likely to grow in terms of sales.

Ending diesel and petrol car sales by 2040 is a step in the right direction but given that electric cars are coming anyway this is probably pretty irrelevant. It’s a bit like saying we’re banning the sale of steam engines by 2040,”

Industry insiders warn that just like anything else, people will only really catch on once the “clean” cars reach a cheaper or similar price to petrol and diesel ones.

So why the deadline?

“The deadline was announced by the government on Wednesday as part of a plan to reduce air pollution. The blueprint highlighted roughly £1.4 billion ($1.8 billion) in government investment designed to help ensure that every vehicle on the road in Britain produces zero emissions by 2050.” As per CNN

Aside from being essential for the future, clean air is also essential for right now. Around 40 000 deaths occur each year in Britain as a result of outdoor air pollution.

Tags: