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London Councils have expressed concern over the Mayor’s £60 million plan to see 100 000 electric cars in London by 2025.

Boris Johnson’s plan includes 25 000 charging points in car parks and streets throughout the capital, special spaces reserved for the vehicles and a proposal to allow electric cars in bus lanes.

Chairman of the transport and environment committee, Mike Fisher, said ‘Although we welcome ideas on how to reduce pollution caused by transport in London, there are many implications of electric vehicles which need to be considered carefully.’

The report by London Council’s Transport and Environment Commitee expresses concern that increased congestion would deter Londoners from walking or cycling. Concerns have also been expressed over the location of charging points and the possible need for new electricity sub-stations to provide the power. Trailing charging leads could potentially cause accidents.

However, Boris continues to promote the eco-friendly vehicles and the potential savings owners could make. For example, to charge the battery of an electric Smart car EV requires 15 KWh and the cost of this can be as low as 85 pence if carried out on cheaper overnight electricity rates. While a complete charge can take up to 8 hours, Smart state that the time taken to go from 30% to 80% capacity is 3.5 hours.

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Filed under: Eco-projects, People