Mainstreaming the electric vehicle
This vision of this collaborative innovation project is that 50% of UK passenger journeys will be in electric vehicles by 2020. Every big idea needs a bold vision. Plenty of us are already convinced of the pressing need to change the way we get around, including the UK Government which has called for industry support to enable significant electrification of vehicle transport by 2020 and reductions in exhaust emissions of 90%.
Problems
There are significant hurdles to overcome. Corporations can be slow and reactive and consumers don’t like change. Existing electric vehicle development activities offer point solutions, rather than taking an holistic approach, and the automotive and oil industries want to protect their existing business models.
Solutions
However, there is already significant momentum. Battery technology has advanced to the stage where 200 mile range vehicles with 4 hour charging cycles are a reality. Whole life costs are a reasonable match for their fossil fuel counterparts and the cars don’t have to be nerdy, already some of them look pretty good and are fun to drive.
No single company, public body or industry sector has all the answers to mainstreaming electric vehicles. The private transport ecosystem is fragmented – but we need all the components to succeed. We cannot overcome the barriers by working in isolation – but together, we can.
There is already plenty of EV activity, but each initiative focuses on a limited set of challenges.
Together it is achievable
To achieve our vision we need to take an holistic, open and collaborative approach. If you are interested in shaping this vision in collaboration with Unipart, we would like to hear from you. We are putting together a group of motivated individuals and enterprises to drive this exciting challenge forward.
