Ban on new petrol/diesel cars by 2030 - AIBU to be excited?

[almostautumn]

The government are set to announce a ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030. As someone who lives in a polluted city (London) and worries about the effect that carbon emissions are having on my family’s health, I’m so excited by this news because I think it will really change our children’s lives for the better. And it’s fantastic that it’s only 10 years away!

www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-54981425

With money and political will I think charging can be done. Almost anywhere a car can be parked a charging point can be installed, and almost everywhere a car can be parked a charging point needs to be installed. For roadside parking, conceptually installing charging points isn't much different to installing streetlights.

But that requires a lasting government commitment. To bring EV charging of at least x kW to at least y% of the population. Much as has been made (albeit not very well done) for internet access. And so far I've not seen any of that.

@WitchesSpelleas

I have two EV's on one I pay £200 per month and one is £400 per month.

We paid £600 outright for our second hand petrol car. You live in a different world!

^This

I won't be able to afford a car. We buy second hand cars at a cost of 3-4k. How is that going to translate into an electric car?

I also think there are huge problems for anyone who drives longer distances. It's 14 hours drive to the inlaws house. How the heck does that work in an electric car?

It's 14 hours drive to the inlaws house. How the heck does that work in an electric car?
34 hours :)

With money and political will I think charging can be done. Almost anywhere a car can be parked a charging point can be installed, and almost everywhere a car can be parked a charging point needs to be installed. For roadside parking, conceptually installing charging points isn't much different to installing streetlights

If you are suggesting people would be able to charge their car regardless of where on the street it was parked, the charging points would have to be free.

It's optimistic to suppose we'd all be given free electricity in this way - and anyway, there's no such thing as 'free' - the cost would doubtless end up being added to council tax, so the costs would fall on non-drivers too, and those who were still running old petrol cars.

And how long before people would start abusing it - running their entire household electric circuit from a 'free' charging point using dangerously overloaded extension leads? Can't afford a new gas central heating system to comply with regs - no worries, just plug six electric heaters into your nearest charging point!

@WitchesSpelleas

I have two EV's on one I pay £200 per month and one is £400 per month.

We paid £600 outright for our second hand petrol car. You live in a different world!

but there is no way your car costs you £0 annually - repairs, maintenance, MOT, these are all costs as is petrol.

I swapped like for like and now pay less.

Eventually you will be able to pick up an EV for much less because there will be more of them around.

5 years ago I was in a tiny minority buying an EV - those cars are now worth about £8k. You have to wait for the smaller cheaper ones to age then you will pick one up for £500.

How long does it take to charge an EV at the moment if it is completely low?

@Baileysforchristmas

How long does it take to charge an EV at the moment if it is completely low?

Depends - on a rapid charger it is about 15 mins to get it 80% full, 30 mins to 100%. At home it's about 7 hours....but only have a slow charger at home - I could have paid a little more and doubled the speed of it. But I don't need to as home charging is overnight for me so no need.

@Baileysforchristmas

How long does it take to charge an EV at the moment if it is completely low?

Depends on the car and the means of charging. Some can go from zero(ish) to 80% in as little as 30 mins. Some can take 8 or more hours to go from zero(sih) to 100%

@pinkbalconyrailing individual car ownership needs to be more inconvenient and expensive. I am wheelchair bound , without my car I could not take children to school, visit friends, go shopping etc etc etc

Autonomous cars for everyday journeys are decades away. I've been in one and they are very much still in the early stages. Not to mention the ethical and legal implications.

You will see an increase in self parking cars, cars that can drive semi autonomously on motorways etc, but on normal suburban or country roads the tech is a fair way off yet.

Oh and I need a mobility car due to my disability. I doubt pip would be over to cover what the dealership need.

Just said on the news that hybrids will still be allowed. So I imagine a lot of people will get those.

If you are suggesting people would be able to charge their car regardless of where on the street it was parked, the charging points would have to be free.

Why would they? Yes, it's extra complexity to include a payment system, but it's entirely achievable. It could either be done by a card tap payment, or linked to any kind of road pricing/tax scheme, or even by cash if it's really wanted. And it's not hard to make the charger turn itself off if someone unplugs your car and tries to plug in theirs to steal power.

So how would you charge your car overnight if you live in a flat or terraced house? I know it’s been mentioned on here before, just wondering how it works? So say you have done a long journey to Europe, there’s not many charging points, you are low, you then have to wait 8 hours to charge your car? How much are the cars that charge in 30 mins?

@Baileysforchristmas

So how would you charge your car overnight if you live in a flat or terraced house? I know it’s been mentioned on here before, just wondering how it works? So say you have done a long journey to Europe, there’s not many charging points, you are low, you then have to wait 8 hours to charge your car? How much are the cars that charge in 30 mins?

@Baileysforchristmas it's not about the cars as much as the charging points. There are lots of rapids in the UK which can charge a car from empty to full in half an hour (but you wouldn't necessarily be empty when charging). But super rapids are beginning to be seen which do it in 10-15 minutes. There are already rapids at most motorway service stations, more so in Europe. You couldn't easily charge overnight if you lived in a flat or terraced house, granted. But councils could put in charging on streets (this is already happening), supermarkets increasingly have them (so you charge up while you do your shopping) as do workplaces (these tend to be slower chargers but that's fine you just park up and charge slowly while you're at work). It does need people to change behaviours but none of this is insurmountable.

Can all cars use rapid chargers or only certain ones at the moment?

I don’t understand why installing charging points should be the responsibility of the council. Surely private companies will be invited to install the infrastructure, recouping the cost by charging a fee? Or the car manufacturers will invest in installing charging points, again recouping the cost by charging a fee.
There is no way that any local authority has the funds to do this

@Baileysforchristmas at the moment only Tesla’s can use the Tesla superchargers. I don’t know how fast other charge points are personally

I don’t understand why installing charging points should be the responsibility of the council. Surely private companies will be invited to install the infrastructure, recouping the cost by charging a fee?

That is how it works currently. You pay via an app on your phone.

supermarkets increasingly have them (so you charge up while you do your shopping) as do workplaces (these tend to be slower chargers but that's fine you just park up and charge slowly while you're at work).

I hope somebody will ensure that there will be disabled charging/parking spots.

@Bwlch I don’t even need to do that at the moment - I just plug mine in and it charges the card linked to my account. So no faffing with spa etc

Apps*

@Baileysforchristmas

Can all cars use rapid chargers or only certain ones at the moment?

Pretty much all electric cars can use rapid chargers but some are more rapid than others and there are different brands and standards.

@GroundAlmonds

supermarkets increasingly have them (so you charge up while you do your shopping) as do workplaces (these tend to be slower chargers but that's fine you just park up and charge slowly while you're at work).

I hope somebody will ensure that there will be disabled charging/parking spots.

As I mentioned upthread, every time I visit our local ASDA the two electric car charging spaces are always filled by ordinary cars, if I had an electric car there's no chance of me getting charged there while I shop. We have two co-ops (a large and a small) and a small Tesco in town, none of them has any electric charge points, and nor are there any public ones.