Hybrid vehicles are an expensive farce rather than a stepping stone to electrified transportation, says the director of a charging point company.
“Hybrid vehicles are undermining the important environment work to electrify the UK transport network,” says Jack Parsler, Development Director of nationwide electric vehicle charge point installer Crystal EV.
With their road tax incentives, BIK incentives, company car benefits, congestion and ULEZ charge exemption, and the perception of reducing the much touted ‘EV range anxiety’, hybrid vehicles have understandably become very popular. Yet those financial incentives mean most users are simply benefitting from taxation breaks rather than helping to reduce emissions and energy consumption. Most users, and particularly those in urban areas where reducing emissions is health-critical, are driving around only using the hybrid’s petrol or diesel engine.
“Most of us private cabbies in London now run hybrids for the tax breaks and ULEZ, and no one I know ever charges the battery,” said a London Private Hire Taxi Driver.
Towing around an extra half tonne or more of redundant battery weight increases fuel consumption and emissions, has a much higher manufacturing impact than either a pure battery electric or pure ICE vehicle, and wholly undermines any perceived ‘green’ or ‘eco’ benefit, added Mr. Parsler.
Crystal EV is one of the UK’s largest nationwide charge point installers, enabling EV charging in residential, business, blue-light and Motability sites.