Motorists prepared to switch to electric

May 29 2009 New research from the RAC Foundation has claimed as many as 6.75 million British motorists are considering replacing their existing vehicle with an electric car in the next five years.

This figure represents a fifth of all British motorists, the organisation said, but it warned that the government's plans to provide grants of up to £5,000 to those looking to buy electric vehicles could backfire because the cars themselves won't be ready for a mass market until at least 2017.

Director of the RAC Foundation professor Stephen Glaister said: "What the government is in danger of doing is putting the cart before the horse. It is actively promoting the purchase of electric vehicles long before there is any chance of manufacturers making them widely available."

He continued: "Ministers' thinking on green technology is all over the place. They talk of incentives of up to £5,000 for prospective buyers of electric cars from 2011. Yet at that stage there will be almost nothing in the showroom for people to purchase."

Introducing more electric vehicles into the market could result in more people replacing their current vehicles, which could in turn increase the number of used cars available on the market.

The government has also launched a scrappage scheme to encourage more drivers of older vehicles to replace their cars with newer, more environmentally-friendly models.

According to the BBC, the scrappage scheme has already resulted in 35,000 orders for new cars since it was announced in April.

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