Grant Shapps stars in ‘Wild West’ themed electric vehicle promo
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Angry drivers across the country are pushing back on the Government’s push for greener motoring, claiming the cost of living crisis and the rising price of electricity means that electric vehicles (EVs) remain only for the well-off.
The Government plans to ban petrol and diesel cars by 2030 and switch most drivers to EVs.
It also announced a huge investment of £1.6billion into charging infrastructure last week, with the funding meaning that there will eventually be five times more electric chargepoints in Britain than petrol pumps.
But drivers are furious at the measures and say they cannot afford to buy EVs, even with available grants and the lower cost of running them.
They also point out that producing batteries for EVs is not without effect on the environment, claiming they may not be as green as the Government suggests.
Express.co.uk readers have been making their thoughts on the push toward EVs known in their thousands.
And many have vowed they will keep hold of their more traditional petrol and diesel powered cars for as long as possible.
Commenter ‘Servative’ claimed: “I’m sick to the back teeth with all this. Boris Johnson has betrayed us on taxation, inflation, migration, fishing, care home fees, pensions, Northern Ireland, the Northern Powerhouse, HS2 phase2, clean air zones, low traffic neighbourhoods,, pandering to cyclists, and net zero nonsense.
“My gas bill is going to be treble what it used to be.
“Millions of people are faced with a choice between heating or eating.
“They can’t afford electric cars. Manufacturing businesses can’t afford the electricity, so jobs will go abroad and millions will be unemployed.
“And what’s it all for? Virtue signalling, that’s all. Boris Johnson has got to go, and fast.”
‘Norfolk Boy’ agreed, adding: “It takes me five mins to fill up with petrol and there is rarely a queue.
“At a minimum of 30 minutes for a full charge that means they will need six times as many charging points. Those pushing EV’s are living in Cloud Cuckoo Land. They are unaffordable for the ordinary person.”
Another reader, ‘Sir Realist’ said: “The real question is about where all this extra electricity is going to come from as it doesn’t just appear on the grid.
“Truth is, most normal people can’t afford an EV, and until that changes, people will have no choice but to use the internal combustion engine… plus it needs to be as convenient as filling up in a normal station, 30 minutes is still too long.
“What they should do is make use of the eco-friendly efuels that are being developed that can be used in normal vehicles.
“Eventually, the switch will happen but not as fast as some think. The internal combustion engine will still be around for a long time yet.”
There was some support for the switch among site users however.
‘SDM’ said: “Yes, EVs are expensive but a lot of that cost comes from running EV and ICE production lines as well as the economics of supply and demand.
“However even if electricity doubled in price today it is still cheaper than current fuel costs and cheaper to service too.
“Modern EV batteries last 15-20 years, not five. The early EV batteries degraded quickly but newer ones don’t – as long as drivers looks after them!
“After batteries are no longer viable for car use they can be reused for home/commercial battery storage systems. They will have a second or third life. Can’t say the same about most engines and gearboxes.”
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