Charging points for electric cars are to be installed in thousands of car parks and on streets as part of a government plan to convert drivers from petrol and diesel to electricity.

Under the scheme, motorists will be able to plug in and recharge their batteries while shopping or at work. In the longer term, those who are unable to wait will be able to exchange their empty battery and drive on with minimal delay.

Ministers plan to kick-start mass production of electric cars with a £100 million package that will include incentives for manufacturers and tax breaks for drivers.

They intend to borrow ideas pioneered in Israel, where half a million recharging points are being installed in a scheme known as Project Better Place.

Renault and Nissan are developing an electric car with a range of more than 100 miles and plan to mass-produce them from 2011.

There are fewer than 3,000 electric cars on the roads in Britain – less than 0.1 per cent of the total.

The lack of range is the main drawback of existing models. They need recharging after about 30 miles, making them suitable for only short journeys within cities.

The Government believes that many more drivers can be persuaded to go electric by a combination of easy-access recharging points and the new generation of longer-range, higher-performance, battery-powered cars.

The Israeli scheme, which is being closely studied by officials from the Department for Transport and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, involves building battery switching stations for drivers travelling farther than the 100-mile range of future electric cars.

Under the scheme, drivers will be able to pull into a station and, without having to get out of their car, have their depleted battery replaced within five minutes with a fresh one.

However, most of the recharging of electric cars will be done at home overnight, when there is excess capacity in the grid. The average motorist drives less than 30 miles a day and would only occasionally need to exchange batteries or recharge away from home.

Britain’s electric car programme will be launched on Monday by Geoff Hoon, the Transport Secretary, and Ian Pearson, the Business Minister. Mr Pearson, said: “The Government is committed to bring lower carbon vehicles to Britain’s roads as soon as possible. We need to act now to ensure that the UK is at the forefront of this new industry.

“The development of electric vehicle technology is an opportunity for the UK to take the lead and, given the current state of the global economy, we need to seize that opportunity now.”

He added: “I am looking forward to discussing with experts from around the world how we can move forward one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century – the transformation of cars and the car industry.”

Current affairs

— The Scottish businessman Robert Anderson is credited with inventing the first crude electric carriage some time between 1832 and 1839

— There are 18 different makes of electric car ranging from the CityCom AG 39mph CityEL to the 110mph Venturi Fétish

— The best-selling electric car in the world is the REVA G-Wiz i, which costs around £9,500

— The Tesla Roadster goes from 0 to 60mph in under four seconds

— All electric cars use an electric motor. Hybrids use a combination of an internal combustion engine and electric motor

— It costs about £1 per 60 miles to run an electric car compared with £3 per 60 miles for a petrol version of the same vehicle

— Car batteries are recharged just like mobile phone batteries, typically overnight

Source: www.veva.bc.ca, Times database

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