The European car market will be relying on hybrid and electric vehicles more in the future if reports about banning fuel-driven cars in Europe are to be believed. But at this stage, despite the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, the Japanese car manufacturers are still slowing making their mark in the electric sector.

After seeing the first Nissan Leaf deliveries in the UK, Japanese counterpart Toyota has announced a new partnership in Paris to help test its Toyota Prius hybrid models and the supporting electric recharging infrastructure. We don’t know what agreements a company like Renault might have, so we’re making a guess when we say that the Japanese company might have beaten the French in their own market.

Renault is heavily investing in its electric vehicles, with the Renault Fluence to be released later this year, and an electric Twingo to follow, possibly as early as 2014. With the Nissan Leaf winning the 2011 European Car of the Year award, and the Toyota Prius still the world’s original hybrid, the Japanese brands could well have a head start in the electric segment of the European car market if these kinds of infrastructure deals continue.

Source | WCF

....

0 comments

A radical EU transport proposal includes the aim of banning all petrol and diesel-powered cars by 2050. The plan is to have European city centres free of fossil fuel vehicles and reduce oil dependence by up to 60 percent. The plan includes interim objectives regarding overall transport and road safety issues, including halving fuel traffic in urban centres by 2030 and halving road casualties by 2020.

We doubt the measures will ever be passed, but imagine that they are exaggerated so that when modified, they still mean something. With electric and hybrid technology at our fingertips, maybe something completely over the top is required to start the revolution needed. The European car market would certainly never be the same again.

The plan includes a large slice of measures which take account of public transport, including using mass forms of transport for trips less than 190 miles, and an ambitious integrated European travel network which links all major airports with railway lines. It’s called the ‘Single European Transport Area’ and makes a whole lot of sense to us (as it will to anyone who has made their way from Milan Malpensa to the city’s Central Station).

Continue reading: European Union to ban fuel cars by 2050

....

0 comments