The UK government will still miss its climate targets, despite bringing forward a ban on fossil fuel vehicles, says a leading environmental think tank.
A report from New Automotive has forecast that car emissions will still by 40 per cent higher than the government’s own targets, even if petrol and diesel cars are banned by 2030. While the ban will cut emissions by 46m tonnes, there will still be 21m combustion engines on the road, just ten million less than the current number. The government’s own projections have an even split of EVs and ICE engines by 2030, but according to New Automotive’s report that is unlikely to be the case.
“A ban in the 2030s will do nothing to tackle the long tail of polluting cars that will be left on our roads for many years to come,” the report said.
“Reducing car emissions means reducing petrol and diesel car miles travelled. These miles will mostly be replaced by electric car miles, but they could also be reduced by modal shift including public transport as well as cycling and walking. The Department for Transport must work with departments across government to ensure that policy supports a reduction in petrol and diesel car miles.”