Electric cars and heating will mean that every house has to be rewired
SIR – Victoria Ward (report, August 21) only scratched the surface of the problem of increased demand from electric vehicle charging.
There are many larger demands than a kettle – an electric shower or a large oven, for example – that could easily be in use simultaneously with the car charger and the kettle.
An even more intractable problem will emerge with the preposterous proposal to convert gas-fired central heating systems to electrical power.
Electricity board fuse ratings would have to be upgraded three- or four-fold and domestic wiring would have to be replaced. The distribution network and grid system would also require strengthening – even if we had the wealth to build the associated power stations and install all the battery plants that would be required to store electricity from renewables. Paul Spare
Davenham, Cheshire
SIR – Our policy to end the sale of new conventional petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2040 is achievable (Leading article, August 22).
The National Grid has estimated that this will mean “an 8 per cent increase on today’s peak demand value” – a modest increase for which we have 23 years to prepare. The pressure on the National Grid will be limited, thanks to “smart” chargers and time-of-use tariffs to encourage vehicle charging outside peak hours.
We are also investing nearly £100million to make sure we have the right charging infrastructure in place. Publicly accessible charging points have increased seven-fold to 11,000 since 2010, meaning the United Kingdom now has the largest network of superfast charging points in Europe.
Last month Volvo announced that all new models from 2019 will be fully electric or hybrids. Additional technologies such as hydrogen fuel are gaining momentum.
Thérèse Coffey MP (Con) Environment Minister
London, SW1
SIR – We have a population of 66 million, with 32 million cars. The population is predicted to be about 73million in 2040, and it is reasonable to plan for 40 million cars by then.
However, it will take the motor industry five to 10 years to switch to making only electric vehicles, so it may only have 15 years in which to build the cars – that is 2.7million new cars per year. Is that realistic ? John Mcnab
Stevenage, Hertfordshire
SIR – Charles Sandison (Letters, August 23) covers 80 miles a day in his electric vehicle and it “only” takes three hours to charge. My efficient petrol engine takes something less than two minutes to fill with enough petrol for 80 miles.
As someone who regularly travels 400 miles or more, I look forward to spending several nights in hotels en route as I try to complete my journey. Roger Masters
Grantown-on-spey, Morayshire
SIR – The electric car industry still puts the cart before the horse. The problem of producing enough electricity and having a practical method for charging or replacing batteries has to be cracked before anyone other than a optimistic idealist would contemplate buying a fully electric car.
This is why the original electric cars of the end of the 19th century gave way to primitive petrol-driven vehicles. Geraldine Wills
Chaffcombe, Somerset