Brighton and Hove is preparing to introduce charging points for electric cars. But it is not just petrolheads who say they would never swap the pumps for a plug – no matter what the benefits. Simon Barrett reports.

Almost ten years ago, technology journalist Gerry Woolf installed the first private electric vehicle charging point in Brighton.

The founder of the now dissolved Electric Vehicle Association spent years championing the cause and telling motorists the future was electric.

Despite the fanfare, there was no rush of electric vehicles to the charging point in Westmeston Avenue, Saltdean.

Fast forward a few years and Mr Woolf has now turned his back on electric cars, saying there is simply no demand for them in Brighton and Hove.

Despite that, a pilot scheme to install ten charging points at a cost of £30,000 has been given the go-ahead by Brighton and Hove City Council and could be extended if the technology proves popular.

The project is to be funded with a £2.2 million European Union grant, recently awarded to deliver transport initiatives in the city.

But Mr Woolf said he sees more potential in hybrid cars such as the Toyota Prius which are powered by both electricity and conventional fuel.

He said: “This is simply a case of ill-informed people making second-rate decisions. Widespread use of electric cars is just not going to happen.

“That is not a blinkered viewpoint, that is coming from the founder of the Electric Vehicle Association.

“I am an advocate of electric usage in cars but pure electric cars just simply do not have the range or the benefits that will appeal to most people.

“The fact is that you can achieve the same emissions reduction and fuel economy with a hybrid vehicle – and that is the way forward.”

More than 70 on-street electrical points are already installed in Britain.

In Westminster 12 points are in use and provide charging for an annual cost of £75.

The machines are operated with a smart-card supplied by the council and a similar scheme is likely to be used in Brighton and Hove.

Electric car owners are also given half-price parking permits in Brighton and Hove.

The most popular brand of electric car in Britain is the G-wiz, which has a top speed of 40mph and a range of 40 miles on a full charge.

Charging a G-wiz takes up to eight hours. About 600 have been sold in London.

Mr Woolf said: “Electric cars have become a small success story in London, largely because you do not have to pay the congestion charge if the car is electric.

“But there is not that added bonus in Brighton and Hove.

“It is a very hilly city as well and some of those hills could be a real struggle in an electric vehicle.”

The council was selected ahead of 40 other cities which made bids for the Civitas City Vitality Sustainability cash.

Elektromotive, based at the Sussex Innovation Centre at the University of Sussex, Falmer, is the company behind the onstreet charging points.

Its boss, Calvey Taylor-Haw, said the growth of the technology hinges on the popularity of electric cars and people having confidence they can recharge the vehicle.

The firm is now at the forefront of producing such charging stations, and its services are in demand around the world.

But others are not so sure.

Sam Baker, 27, of St Mary Magdalene Street, Brighton, drives a VW Golf and said he would never be tempted to swap.

He said: “With the options currently on offer, I just do not think it is viable for most people to switch to electric cars.

“Not only are they nowhere near fast or powerful enough, they also don’t look that good.

“I can imagine estate agents driving around the city in one to get to appointments but most people need their cars to be able to travel long distances and the capacity to do that simply isn’t there with electric cars.”

Officers from Sussex Police have been trying out an electric car during the summer.

The car was loaned to the Brighton and Hove division and was used by neighbourhood officers to get around the city to attend street briefings and visits.

The Gem Car, which stands for Global Electric Motorcars, is already used commercially in America and by police forces in New York, Los Angeles and Miami.

However, it is difficult to envisage motorists queuing up to swap their fuel-powered vehicles for a car with a top speed of just 30mph.

Although, on the plus side, you wouldn’t be caught speeding.

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