So, bye bye fossil fuel cars - it was great while it lasted.

[Max-Felix]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40723581

Plenty will still be around in our lifetimes but this is a pretty significant announcement for the history of the motor car.

Just glad to have had the enjoyment of a good old internal combustion engine in so many ways over the years.

 

[ChrisB]

Welcome a new power station/solar field/wind farm coming to a neighbourhood near you!

 

[hirsty]

We all knew it was coming, but certainly makes it a lot more real by putting a date on things.

Bring it on I say, we'll not miss if half as much as we think.

 

[Digger]

What will be next. Oh, the pollution with batteries and wind farm recyling problems. Never seems to be good news just doom and gloom. Time for a trip

 

[WelshGas]

We all knew it was coming, but certainly makes it a lot more real by putting a date on things.

Bring it on I say, we'll not miss if half as much as we think.

Words are easy, putting it into practise is another thing entirely. I won't be holding my breathe. We shall see.

 

[hirsty]

What will be next. Oh, the pollution with batteries and wind farm recyling problems. Never seems to be good news just doom and gloom. Time for a trip

Why not look at it as good news then? No more stink & noise clogging up the cities - naysayers have held this back far too long.

23-years ago you'd never have been able to imagine a Tesla S - we'll all be just fine

 

[ChrisB]

I will be in my eighties, so I think my main concern (if I am still around) will be getting to the toilet in time, rather than how far my new electric car will take me.

 

[blakeley]

A lot can change technology wise in 22 years, if you think back 22 years ago my computer hard drive was 500MB and now I can have 128GB in a memory card the size of my small finger nail. We should see some very interesting fossil fuel alternatives over the two decades.

 

[Moakesy]

Good news, as it gives confidence to business to invest in recharging points, battery technology etc.

As it is still 23 years away, no need for drastic knee jerk reactions. I'll be more interested in the short to medium term plans hopefully announced today.....in particular, will diesel drivers now be punished for following previous incentives to buy diesel? I hope (and expect) not, but some clarity would be nice.

 

[hirsty]

Applying AI & quantum computing will get this cracked in no time - I'd bet on cheap clean fusion energy in my lifetime. Google, Bezos, Musk, Zuckerberg, Apple & the like are the new railway barons with practically unlimited research resources.

See also:

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jul/25/google-enters-race-for-nuclear-fusion-technology

“We boiled the problem down to ‘let’s find plasma behaviours that an expert human plasma physicist thinks are interesting, and let’s not break the machine when we’re doing it’,” said Baltz. “This was a classic case of humans and computers doing a better job together than either could have separately.”

 

[MattBW]

We are progressing at a pace like never before in history, things are different even from a year ago and new directions are being highlighted all the time. It is truly a wonderful age but also maybe a little daunting.

I forgot how dirty and smelly our coal fuelled world was. A neighbour has had a wood/coal burner fitted and the first time I went outside on a cold day and smelt it I thought something was wrong as it smelt so strange to me. I had completely forgotten how the world smelt when I was growing up because we never noticed it.

In my industry for example in a few short years, biogas is growing quickly from nowhere a few years ago. Some trucks are moving to gas (John Lewis for example) which is far far cleaner than oil based fuel. Recycling waste both food and animal/human can produce sustainable gas that can be used in the gas network . We are a long way from replacing traditional sources but we are moving forward rapidly. . There is work going on to look at even cleaner still.

I have confidence that we will find a way, human beings are problem solvers and we will move forward, make things better and a few numpties such as Trump I don't think will get in the way.

I do worry about my old van, about losing money but I want to see a cleaner world more than I worry about my bank balance. I also wager when electric is fully established conversions will be feasible too. Making my t25 silent would be a miracle

 

[Digger]

Why not look at it as good news then? No more stink & noise clogging up the cities - naysayers have held this back far too long.

23-years ago you'd never have been able to imagine a Tesla S - we'll all be just fine

Its not the demise of combustion engine as the new investments may bring about much better and newer power sources. My gripe is with the newspapers and journalism which focuses on doom and gloom. Why not more good news. More good news and positive stories please.

 

[T6 CFO]

Its not the demise of combustion engine as the new investments may bring about much better and newer power sources. My gripe is with the newspapers and journalism which focuses on doom and gloom. Why not more good news. More good news and positive stories please.

Perish the thought. Try to have some constructive dialogue, look for optimism rather than pessimism, try to find unity rather than division. No better to seek 10 second sound bites or a banner headline. Aaaaaaaarrrrggggggghhhhhhhh


Mike

 

[Loz]

By then I'll be 75 and I will already be driving my electric vehicle, a mobility scooter

 

[GrannyJen]

In twenty five years time the T12 Cali will do 40,000 miles per tankful of fission rods, will be auto-driven whilst the "driver" enjoys a nice cup of tea in the back, sat on the electronic infinitely adjustable seating, will ride on roads that self-repair with inbuilt solar technology and will still have roof rot

 

[hirsty]

Its not the demise of combustion engine as the new investments may bring about much better and newer power sources. My gripe is with the newspapers and journalism which focuses on doom and gloom. Why not more good news. More good news and positive stories please.

Incensed watching the BBC TV news with their Pathe footage of a post-war BMC factory and a stupid milk float type van in black & white - eejits. Autocar editor then gets a good part of the slot underlining "even industry-insiders think it will be incredibly difficult to get the infrastructure ready in time ..."

Very little emphasis on 40,000 preventable deaths per year (so another million or so before this makes any difference ...)

How about "British technology firms poised to capture biggest global infrastructure opportunity in decades"?, or "hundreds of thousands of new high-skill technology & green-sector jobs to be created"? No attempt to sell it as something desirable, whilst Norway & India crack on with it even earlier.

Yes there are 37M internal combustion cars on the road vs current 8,000 public charging spots. Yes it is going to be very hard & a big change, but:

- not all of those cars & vans will be swapped 1-for-1 with an electric
- just-in-time rentals & sharing (like an Amazon Prime subscription) will grow off the charts
- going to University for three years & then working full-time for 40 more to service impossible loans on a degree, then a house and two personal cars will come to be seen as insane

Talking ourselves out of doing things by focusing on the negatives seems to sell newspapers - Lord knows why ...

 

[Digger]

Incensed watching the BBC TV news with their Pathe footage of a post-war BMC factory and a stupid milk float type van in black & white - eejits. Autocar editor then gets a good part of the slot underlining "even industry-insiders think it will be incredibly difficult to get the infrastructure ready in time ..."

Very little emphasis on 40,000 preventable deaths per year (so another million or so before this makes any difference ...)

How about "British technology firms poised to capture biggest global infrastructure opportunity in decades"?, or "hundreds of thousands of new high-skill technology & green-sector jobs to be created"? No attempt to sell it as something desirable, whilst Norway & India crack on with it even earlier.

Yes there are 37M internal combustion cars on the road vs current 8,000 public charging spots. Yes it is going to be very hard & a big change, but:

- not all of those cars & vans will be swapped 1-for-1 with an electric
- just-in-time rentals & sharing (like an Amazon Prime subscription) will grow off the charts
- going to University for three years & then working full-time for 40 more to service impossible loans on a degree, then a house and two personal cars will come to be seen as insane

Talking ourselves out of doing things by focusing on the negatives seems to sell newspapers - Lord knows why ...

My point exactly. Journalists thrive on negativity and gloom. There are so many positives but sadly they don't seem to matter.

 

[johnyboy]

excellent news! already waiting on my Tesla Model 3 - now I know that I can nurse the Cali to my retirement and get an "new powered" one

 

[DM]

Setting a date is exactly the right thing to do. That's plenty of time for new solutions to be found. Investors will now see it as real and will jump in. I'm not concerned about the lack of infrastructure now. The technology we use in 23 years time will be very different to today's. Although I'm intrigued as to which way it will go. Larger capacity batteries so we only ever need to charge where we sleep? Or rapid charging solutions that can give you a boost in the time it takes to fill up a tank today? Or micro charging solutions that top us up every time we stop at traffic lights? Or robotic battery swap out solutions? Or......? Or......? The opportunities are huge and I hope our innovators can lead the world. Exciting times.

 

[GrannyJen]

It will provide a huge raft of opportunities to find solutions, something the British are very good at.

We should be cheering, improving quality of life and at the same time providing opportunity for invention.

 

[Teejay]

Setting a date is exactly the right thing to do. That's plenty of time for new solutions to be found. Investors will now see it as real and will jump in. I'm not concerned about the lack of infrastructure now. The technology we use in 23 years time will be very different to today's. Although I'm intrigued as to which way it will go. Larger capacity batteries so we only ever need to charge where we sleep? Or rapid charging solutions that can give you a boost in the time it takes to fill up a tank today? Or micro charging solutions that top us up every time we stop at traffic lights? Or robotic battery swap out solutions? Or......? Or......? The opportunities are huge and I hope our innovators can lead the world. Exciting times.

Or a huge grid that sits just another the road way and we have an extendable pole that just supplies us when we need it.

No wait, that's dodgems I'll get my coat.

.. Message ends..

 

[El Greco]

Just hope the average person can still afford to own a car then

 

[Joker 1299]

Just think about all the extra hand car washes that will set up in abandoned petrol stations!

 

[WelshGas]

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/electric-cars-are-not-necessarily-clean/

http://ecologic.eu/sites/files/publication/2013/4058_SummaryreportHvESD.pdf

 

[DM]

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/electric-cars-are-not-necessarily-clean/

http://ecologic.eu/sites/files/publication/2013/4058_SummaryreportHvESD.pdf

Problems problems problems. They can all be solved. Electricity can be produced in a green manner, fossil fuels cannot be burnt in a green manner (yes - I know about carbon capture - not persuaded)

Dealing with the toxic materials in batteries will be the biggest 'green' challenge. But if they are designed to be recycled from the outset anything is possible.

Everyone can do their bit by going green now. - https://bulb.co.uk/ - other green energy producers are available.