HOW THE GOVERNMENT GRANTS AFFECTED THE SALES OF ELECTRIC CARS IN THE UK FROM 2011 TO 2016
Introduction
Transport is regarded as one of the main sources of emission of the greenhouse gasses which destroys the ozone layer hence resulting in a global climate change. This has therefore raised concern in many countries and hence most of these state governments have established and implemented some of the measures that would help in the reduction of emission of the transport department. According to the clean power policy, it advocates for the breaking of the dependency rate on fuel by the transport department and thus it sets output together measures that would help in facilitating the development of a single market for the alternative oil fuel for transport in Europe (Hawes 2014, pg 5). However, the government of the United Kingdom is persuading the citizens to use ultra low emission types of vehicles. The adoption of these electric cars will involve the use of both the pure EV as well as the plug-in hybrid means of transportation through the integration of various incentives that are operated by the government’s office for reduced emission of the vehicles. This involves the plug-ins incentives of all means of transport. The government also puts into consideration the availability of the unrestricted charge locations as necessary so as to encourage many citizens to uptake the plug-ins ULEV’s which leads to the establishment of its plugged in places plan. The purpose of this paper is to analysis how the government grants helped the electric car sale in the UK from 2011 to 2016. The paper will also present and discuss the policy of the government grants and the UK electric vehicle market since the government policy realized. It will finally analyze how the government grant increased the sales of electric cars in the UK.
Identified issues:
One of the universal issues that draw growing concern is climate change, transport is responsible for 23% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (IEA, 2015). In the UK, road transport accounts 21% of the overall carbon dioxide emission thus destroying the ozone layer and hence influencing the climate change (Hawes 2016, 31).The UK government successfully encouraged people buying electric cars with the plug-in grant, the total registration of plug-in electric cars in the UK has risen from 1,082 units in 2011 to 28,188 units in 2015 (SMMT, 2011 and 2015). However, the sales of ultra-low emission vehicles are not likely to meet the 2020 target. This study will help to find out the success factors, which affected the electric car sales and assist in meeting for the subsequent greenhouse gas emissions target.
Contribution
In carrying out this research, it will serve as an eye opener to most of the manufacturers in the car assembly industry as they will be able to realize the effects that the government grants has in the industry. Thus they will be able to increase their production so as to meet the increasing demand for the electric cars. However, the manufacturers of fuel based vehicles through the research they will realize the many reasons as to why they should shift their production into electric car manufacture so as to be competent in the assembly industry. The potential people, however, will be able to realize the policies put in place for the acquirement of the grants in the UK. In the understanding of the way that the government offers the grants to all who have met the conditions required by the government, many will be able to apply for the grants and this will continue increasing the sales and widespread adoption of the electric cars. This will also help in the realization of other grants that comes along with the electric vehicles such as the grant towards the purchasing price and the installation expenditures of charges near one’s places (Hawes 2016, 31). This research, therefore, will offer a basic forum of persuasion on the purchase of electric cars that are cheaper to run and environmentally friendly instead of the continued use of the traditional fuel vehicles which save an individual’s money and make the UK a better place to live in due to the clean environment.
Research aim:
The aim of this study is to analysis how the government grants helped the electric car sale in the UK from 2011 to 2016.
Research objective 1:
To evaluate the policy of the government grant and the UK electric vehicle market since the government policy realized.
The government policy for the PHEV AND BEV was established by some national and local government as a financial incentive. The grant that started in January 2011 aimed at reducing the upfront cost of eligible cars. The grant was 25% of the total cost which is $ 7,450. The purchase price was increased to cover up to 35% of the recommended retail price. The government grant was eligible for both the private and the business fleet buyers in order to make sure that a high number of people benefited from it. The subsidy by the government allowed people to buy the vehicles at discounted prices. In April 2014 the government issued a full grant of GB 5,000. This will ensure that the diesel and the petrol vehicles have been minimized in order to lower the carbon dioxide emission (Conlan et al 2016, pg 44).
The importance of the electric cars is to eliminate the dangers caused by the other vehicles. Transport sector can be regarded as the highest pollutant as it makes the quality of the air worse. Reducing the pollution is one key element that the government aims at achieving. The grants aim at facilitating the purchase of ultra-low emission vehicles. The grant has also led to innovation research and development. There has also been the creation of a framework that has created a recharging network of PHEV. Performance standards have also been set high by the electric cars as they have been able to deliver an emission reduction in which the grant has facilitated in replacing them. Air quality has been enhanced as a result of the grant as it has reduced air pollution. The grant has also extended to the transport sector as it has enhanced the upgrade of buses that has further reduced the nitrogen oxide which they produce. This has increased the demand for the electric cars making the UK market have a significant number of electric cars (Conlan et al 2016, pg 49) .
Research objective 2:
To analyze how the government grant increased the sales of electric cars in the UK.
As a result of the government grant in the UK the sales of electric cars has increased by 120% within a year. This means more that 45,000 cars were plug-in and the hybrid vehicles are on the road. The number of electric cars has doubled according to the government information. The increase in the car sales translates into a 2 % rise in the sale of traditional cars over the same period. In the year 2010, a phenomenal growth was recorded as there were only 134 electric cars on the road. The grant accelerated the growth rapidly from the year 2011 in which offered up to 4,500 off the price. Despite the tremendous mark, there are more petrol and diesel engine vehicles on the road in the UK.
The best-selling electric car is the Nissan Leaf as well as hybrid Mitsubishi Outlander. Due to the increasing demand for the electric cars in the UK, the market can be considered to be at a tipping point. Every year thousands of motorists have recorded the need to switch to electric cars due to the cars capability, performance, and reliability that comes with electric motoring (Hawes 2014, pg 5). The grant has played a significant role as it has enabled more than 90% of the daily driving needs thus the mass of EV adoption. However, technology poses a threat to electric motoring. Battery capacity has been further enhanced by the electronic motoring up to 50 % of its original life. This has lead to an increase in charging stations and other great incentives
Literature review
The UK government after realizing the effects that the fuel vehicles have on the environment, they sought to offer a framework in which the electric vehicles and all the low emission means of transportation can grow. Thus the government planned for an infrastructure so as to encourage and accommodate the electric vehicle growth. It, therefore, set forth the different grant flows which they incepted in 2011 and they have been ongoing up to 2016 and there has been a tremendous increase in the number of sales of the electric means of transportation. The de-carbonization process of both the private as well as the public vehicles is viewed as quite an essential measure in assisting the UK in the successfully attainment of climate change requirements as well as the improvement of air quality and especially in places such as London (Hawes 2014, pg 5). The government, therefore, believes that the most appropriate measure of mitigating climate change is the shift in the transport sector from the fuel vehicles into electric means of transport. Therefore the government is convinced that better planning on infrastructure through the distribution of grants to public authorities, businesses as well as the public will help in the improvement of infrastructure. It thus makes distinct vehicle grants available for both the public as well as private means of transport. The government also ensures that they convey locally focused correspondence of funding incorporation with the assembly industry as a part of the go ultra low town plan (Hawes 2016, pg 5).
Research design
The methodology to be used in this research will include the longitudinal review of the impacts that has been posed by the plugin places since the introduction of grants in 2011. This will be used as the basis of this paper as it will help in the reviewing the impacts across the years since the inception of the grants to date hence coming up with informed results. The use of the secondary data will also be essential in this research as it will help to provide data that was collected earlier on in the United Kingdom and the sales recorded before the inception of the government grants and after its introduction. This will thus enable easier analysis and comparison as it will inform on both the supply and the demand of the electric cars before and after the introduction off the governmental grants and the impacts received since then. An exclusive use of the government data will be required as it will provide statistical data on the number of electric vehicles in the consequent years hence allowing easier analysis. Driver and vehicle licensing agencies data will be also essential as it will provide the statistical data on the electric vehicles on the road. Primary data collection, for example, the interviewing and questionnaire methods are also essential for this research. The interviewing method will be used in interviewing the environmentalists and environmental analysts on the environmental status since the inception of the governmental grants on the electric cars. This will provide a professional analysis which will be useful in the research. The use of questionnaires that is, written questions to the various electric vehicles in the UK will provide the sales of the electric cars and they will determine whether the number of sales has risen or not. Random sampling methods will be used whereby a few samples of the charge infrastructural systems in every location will be undertaken randomly.
Ethical and accessibility and timeline
The government of UK has the responsibility for so many services that affect the conditions in which the citizens live in. These conditions can affect the length as well as the quality of the lives of the people and hence the government must find intervention and mitigation measures that would prevent or even reduce these influences. The emission of harmful gasses by the fuel vehicles through transportation process raises concerns to the government as the public health is affected by the release of these noxious gasses from exhaust fumes onto the atmosphere hence causing respiratory disorders. Therefore as the government offers grants to the UK citizens, they help in solving these ethical issues that are raised due to the use of the fuel based vehicles rather than the electric vehicles (House of commons communities and local government committee 2013, pg 5). Accessibility is also essential as the government has a responsibility to ensure that all citizens in the UK have equal access to these grants. Therefore the government ensures that they provide free parking and free charging places available to all at all charging points in most of the cities of the UK. The research will take two months where the first month will be used in the data collection and in the sending out of questionnaires while the second month will involve data analysis and presentation.
Conclusion
It is thus important to note that subsidies offered by the government of UK have tremendously supported the uptake of the electric means of transport in the UK since 2011 and up to date. Thus the study shows a clear that the recharging behavior is determined by the charge point’s location and therefore the government has come up with grants that would help in the installation of charge points. The sale has increased over time and this has enhanced the establishment of a clean environment in the UK.
References
Hawes M. (2014). The UK automotive industry and the EU. Retrieved from:
https://www.smmt.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/SMMT-KPMG-EU-Report.pdf
Conlan, B, Fraser, A, Vedrenne, M, Tate, J & Whittles, A (2016). Evidence review on effectiveness of transport measures in reducing nitrogen dioxide. Crown publishers. Retrieved from:
Hawes M (2016). ultra low emission vehicles guide. Retrieved from:
http://www.smmt.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/ULEV-report-final.pdf
House of commons communities and local government committee (2013). The role of local authorities in health issues. Authority of the House of Commons London. Retrieved from:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmcomloc/694/694.pdf
