Clear thinking on emissions

Sir, – Brian Kelleher and Brian McArdle (Letters, August 5th) make some good points about the availability of second-hard electric vehicles (EVs) and the limitations of the grants available for buying more expensive types of bicycles.

Both letters highlight the fundamental weakness of the main plank of the Government’s strategy for reducing transport emissions, namely the target of about 1 million EVs on our roads by 2030.

By treating the problem primarily in terms of introducing new cars, the plan tends to distract from its goal, which is to reduce the emissions from transport. While EVs clearly have a role to play, particularly in rural areas, there are other much faster, cheaper and more equitable ways of achieving this goal.

Instead of endless discussions about the price of EVs, how they’re going to be charged, and whether the electricity grid will be able to supply enough additional renewable energy to power them, some clear thinking is needed about why so many people in urban areas still use the most energy-inefficient form of transport for short journeys, and what the Government can do to change this. – Yours, etc,