The old fossil fuel car ban that would have taken effect in 2040 has been accelerated to 2035. The 5-year acceleration is to ensure that the UK meets its climate goals by 2050. This ban is unique in that it is one of the first to also cover hybrid vehicles.
The UK has been leading the charge against climate change and is the most developed country in the world to act so aggressively on the matter. It is one of the few countries that is expected to actually reach net zero emissions by 2050.
Automakers in Trouble
This news is nothing short of a nightmare for automakers. The industry is already struggling as a direct result of Brexit.
While the industry was already preparing for a 2040 fossil fuel car ban, a 5-year acceleration is a huge deal, It essentially turns any plan a manufacturer had in place, useless.
This is actually the biggest criticism of moving towards greener technology. It can cost a lot of jobs before new ones are created. However, the UK is not the only country with a fossil fuel ban in place.
Norway will phase out fossil fuel cars and vans by 2025. While India will be striving for only electric cars to be sold by 2030.
Infrastructure Not Ready
Electric cars are a proven technology that is in use around the globe. However, there is a really big problem.
There are not enough charge stations.
This will require a lot of work to achieve and hastening the timeline by 5 years makes it even harder. Luckily, it does appear the UK is committed to making this a reality.
Even before announcing the new date, it was previously announced the goal is to make sure that no electric vehicle owner is ever more than 30 miles away from a charge station.
Electric Vehicles Are The Future
Regardless of when it happens, it is very clear that electric vehicles are the future. Almost every major car manufacturer has already embraced this concept.
Many of them are already spending billions researching and developing improvements to the already existing vehicles like BMW.
The question is not if electric vehicles will take over, but when.
