Electric cars to get £100m aid in UK

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More and more it seems that the future is electric. Financial Times reports that Britain’s hard-pressed car industry on Monday welcomed a £100m ($155m, €125m) pledge from the government to help develop electric and other ultra-low emission cars.

The government will fund up to 100 electric vehicles to test how they operate in real-life driving conditions.

In addition to £100m another £20m was announced for research and development in technology to make electric and other green cars more affordable.

The high purchase price of electric cars – a function of their batteries – and the problem of recharging mean they are unlikely to find mass acceptance without an initial boost from government.

Global carmaking groups including Renault/Nissan, Daimler, General Motors and Mitsubishi plan to introduce plug-in electric or hybrid passenger cars from 2010-11. Daimler’s Smart brand and Toyota are road-testing prototype plug-in models in London.

Ford Motor, Mercedes-Benz, Citroen and Land Rover are among the companies that will compete to supply vans to public-sector bodies, such as the Royal Mail, and city councils including Glasgow, Leeds and Liverpool.

Source: FT