GoinGreen, the company that supplies the G-Wiz, has called for a rethink of plans to give a 100% Congestion Charge discount to all band B vehicles from next year. At the moment, only band A vehicles (cars with CO2 emissions <100 g/km) are exempt from the Charge. If the plans go ahead, cars with emissions of 101-120 g/km would also receive the full discount from February 2008.

Keith Johnston, managing director of GoinGreen, says, “CO2 emissions are a global concern and London must play its part in reducing CO2 emissions. But the real issue for London is air quality (London has the worst air quality in the UK), the major cause of which is vehicle pollution. However, it is not CO2 that is causing most of this, but NOx (oxides of nitrogen) and other particulates that Band B exemption would not address. Electric vehicles, in contrast, do not emit any tailpipe emissions, ever!”

GoinGreen argues that it would be inappropriate to exempt Band B vehicles on the grounds that the real issue for London, air quality, would not be addressed by such a move; and secondly because it would not differentiate between lower carbon petrol and diesel vehicles and the zero-emission electric G-Wiz. The move could result in more congestion and therefore, more pollution.

The majority of drivers of battery electric vehicles, GoinGreen claim, are environmentally-aware and recharge using electricity from renewable sources. As a result, total motoring emissions are virtually zero for this category of motorist and they are rightly exempted from the London Congestion Charge. Even when electricity generated at a power station is taken into account independent research has demonstrated that EVs are at least 40% cleaner than the cleanest hybrid or diesel cars in band B.

“Band B exemption would also discourage further investment in electric vehicles, when the market is at an early and vulnerable stage, by sending out confusing and inappropriate signals to Londoners and others parties”, says Keith Johnston, “the world is watching what happens in London. It would be a great shame if having helped to make London the emission-free car capital of the world, any policy change to further promote low-carbon motoring inadvertently resulted in its demise. With exciting new technologies and products due to be launched in 2008 [including plug-in hybrids], the electric car is the ideal solution to pollution and congestion in London”.

Source: GoinGreen, Ecolane LCA Report 2006 (1MB).
Image: Transport for London