£35m funding boost for ultra-low emission vehicles

12.00 | 14 October 2016 |

Thousands of new electric vehicle charge points are to be installed on streets and at workplaces across the UK result of £10m of Government funding.

Unveiled yesterday (13 Oct) by transport minister John Hayes, the investment comes as part of a ‘major’ £35m package designed to boost the uptake of ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs).

The package, part of the Government’s commitment to investing £600m in ULEVs by 2020, also includes a £20m competition to help councils roll out charge points for ultra-low emission taxis.

A further £3.75m has been invested into a scheme to encourage uptake of zero emission motorcycles and scooters, while £2m has been awarded to public and private sector organisations to deploy hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.

The latest DfT figures show that a record number of new ultra low emission vehicles were registered in the UK during the second quarter of 2016.

The figures, published in September, show 9,657 ULEVs were registered during the three month period from April to June, a year-on-year increase of 49% and a 253% rise on the same period in 2014.

However, figures obtained by the RAC Foundation show that a reduction in the amount of money available through a Government subsidy for new electric cars has led to the number of claimants falling to a two-year low.

The Government says this latest announcement is part of ongoing plans to create cleaner air and reduce emissions. It comes as the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) launches a new consultation on introducing clean air zones in a number of English cities by 2020.

John Hayes, transport minister, said: “No matter what mode of transport you need – a scooter to get to work, a car or a van to run your business – we are here to help you do it with zero emissions.

“The number of ultra-low emission vehicles on our roads are at record levels and new registrations have risen by 250% in just over two years.

“We are committing £35m to help install new chargepoints and offer new grants as we aim for nearly all cars and vans on our roads to be zero emission by 2050.”

 

 

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