Paving the way for electric and autonomous cars
Motorway services and large petrol retailers in the UK will be required to install chargepoints for electric cars, under plans announced in the House of Commons yesterday (18 October 2017) by Transport Minister John Hayes. The Automated and Electric Vehicles Bill – as the name suggests – aims to pave the way for both autonomous (or self-driving) and electric cars and trucks. Alongside the proposals for charge points, the bill also focuses on issues such as insurance for users of autonomous vehicles.
The UK Transport Minister commented: “We want the UK to be the best place in the world to do business and a leading hub for modern transport technology, which is why we are introducing the Automated and Electric Vehicles Bill in Parliament and investing more than £1.2 billion in the industry.
“This bill will aid the construction of greater infrastructure to support the growing demand for automated and electric vehicles as we embrace this technology and move into the future.”
Roads Minister Jesse Norman said: “Automated and electric vehicles will help improve air quality, cut congestion, boost safety and create thousands of skilled jobs in the UK.
“We have already supported the purchase of 115,000 ultra-low emission cars and there are already more than 11,500 publicly available chargepoints, but the demand continues to grow as more people purchase electric vehicles to cut fuel costs and boost the environment.”
