UK launches electric car trial

London - The government announced a 25 million pound project on Tuesday to run trials of electric vehicles that will help the country reduce carbon emissions from car transport.

The government funding, won by eight consortia which are predominantly made up of car manufacturers, energy providers and universities, was announced by Science Minister Paul Drayson and Transport Secretary Andrew Adonis.

Adonis, who drove an electric Smart car at the Guildhall in London, said the aim of the project was to make ultra-low carbon vehicles an everyday feature of life on Britain's roads in less than five years.

"We want Britain to be at the forefront of ultra-low carbon automotive technology, blazing a trail for environmentally friendly transportation," he added.

The eco-friendliness of the electric vehicles parked at the Guildhall could be seen by the lack of exhaust pipes. And like any other electrical appliance, one of the cars had a plug socket instead of a petrol cap.

The plug allows the car to be charged at home, but a fast charger can also be used. Some of the vehicles can travel for 100 miles on a full charge.

No engines, please

The demonstrators preferred not to use the word "engine" when they talked about electric vehicles.

"People internally think 'combustion engines' if you call it an engine. So I would refer to it as an 'electric motor'," said Tim Nicklin, a project manager at Ford.

Under the bonnet of the Mitsubishi innovative Electric Vehicle (MiEV) was a screen washer and nothing more. When the demonstrator started the car and pressed the accelerator it did not rev nor growl. It sounded like a toy.

David Speak, area sales manager from Allied Vehicles, one of the consortia involved in the production of the cars, said the style of driving electric vehicles promoted a "non-aggressive" attitude towards driving.

One of the featured vehicles was the "Lightning" sports car, a 100% electric vehicle capable of reaching 130 miles per hour.

"Low carbon doesn't mean low performance. Modern cars offer power and bucket loads of torque," Drayson said.

But Miguel Fonseca, managing director of Toyota in the UK said a hybrid car, which can be driven in electric mode and can also use petrol efficiently, was more ideal because of the lack, so far, of advanced infrastructure to charge an electric car quickly.

"People don't want to stay four hours in a re-charging point if they are travelling," he added.