Making the most of our electric cars

One of the biggest contributors to our carbon footprint — and one of the clearest symbols of the polluted world we are trying to consign to the past — is our cars. With the average new car emitting 120.4g of CO² for every kilometre driven, it’s clear we need to make the switch to electric transport sooner rather than later. That means a big shift in how we plan and manage our energy system to cope with the extra demand — and smart meters will play a significant role in making it happen.

Last year, 59,911 new electric vehicles (EVs) were registered in the UK, giving EVs a 2.6 per cent share of the market. While it may not sound like much, this is more than a 400 per cent increase — up from just 0.59 per cent in 2014 — and shows the increased appetite for more eco-friendly transport. The rate of increase is expected to grow, with experts predicting that electric cars will be as cheap as fossil-fuelled cars by 2025.