Motorway services and large petrol retailers will be required to install chargepoints for electric cars, under plans announced in the House of Commons yesterday (Wednesday, October 18) by transport minister John Hayes.
The Automated and Electric Vehicles Bill was first revealed in the Queen’s Speech in June.
It aims to increase the access and availability of chargepoints for electric vehicles (EVs), while giving the Government powers to make it compulsory for chargepoints to be installed across the country.
The bill also paves the way for drivers of automated cars to be insured on UK road.
The Government says that automated vehicles have the potential to greatly reduce road traffic accidents.
In 2016, 85.9% of collisions causing injury involved human error, while official research estimates that the market will be worth £50 billion to the UK economy by 2035.
Hayes said: “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.”
Drivers of EVs will be able to easily locate and charge at any chargepoint, using information from sat navs or mobile apps, regardless of the vehicle make or model.
All chargepoints will have to be ‘smart’, meaning they can interact with the grid in order to manage demand for electricity across the country.
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.”
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, welcomed the bill. He said: “It is clear that government needs to do more to accelerate the take-up of electric vehicles, tackling the issues that are currently persuading motorists to sick with conventional fuels, as well as paving the way for autonomy.
“The test, though, will be how effectively those powers are exercised.”
All drivers of automated vehicles will be required to be insured and victims of collisions involving an automated vehicle will have quick and easy access to compensation, in line with existing insurance practices.
James Dalton, director of general insurance policy at the Association of British Insurers (ABI), said: “Insurers wholeheartedly support the development of automated vehicles, as they have the potential to significantly reduce the large number of road accidents caused by driver error.
“We support the approach the government has taken in the bill, as this will give the industry time to prepare for the commercial rollout of fully automated driving technology.”
The bill received its first reading in the House of Commons yesterday (Wednesday, October 18).
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Gareth has more than 20 years’ experience as a journalist having started his career in local newspapers in the 1990s. Prior to joining Fleet News in 2008, he worked in the public sector as a media advisor and is currently news editor at Fleet News.
Derek Webb - 20/10/2017 17:37
Who is "demanding" autonomous vehicles, please tell me. The idea that these driverless cars and trucks will mean less accidents is daft. The 50 billion that someone dreamed up is utter nonsense. The testing of autonomous trucks is laughable, three trucks and one driver is the real idea and don't they look like a train and we already have those. it's like HS2 and the "trial" of 1800 extended trailers for hgv's we are fed "saving this and making that" when all that is really happening is a few will make an extra couple of million, I guess the the trick is to be one of the few.