Changes to Lifestyle Needed to Hit North Yorkshire Carbon Targets

Monday, 21 November 2022 06:00

By Matthew Pells

The way we travel and our relationship with cars will need to change.

The ambitious target to make North Yorkshire the first negative carbon region in the UK is going to require significant changes to lifestyles in the county and to the way people travel.

That's one of the messages from the county council's executive member for Climate Change - Greg White.

He says our attitudes to cars is going to have to change.

The county Council's Executive member for Climate Changes also says that switching to an electric vehicle might not be the best thing for the environment - right now.

As North Yorkshire County Council launches a consultation on how best to roll out EV charging points across the county, Councillor Greg White says not everyone should make the switch to electric vehicles immediately.

The number of electric vehicles in the county is expected to rise from the current figure of around 4,000 to over 134,000 by 2030.

The county council has launched a public consultation on it's Electric Vehicle Strategy. The council says

"Our climate change ambition aims to reduce carbon emissions and achieve carbon net neutrality by 2030, when there will be a national ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles.

We are committed to achieving this by helping our residents and businesses switch to more sustainable modes of travel such as walking, cycling, and using public transport. However, it is acknowledged that many people will still rely on private vehicles so, where this is necessary, we want to help enable the use of low carbon transport, such as electric vehicles. To allow this shift over time, we need facilities to allow drivers to charge their electric vehicles easily and conveniently."

The council say the online survey will help shape the rollout of electric vehicle charging infrastructure and policy across the county. they say it takes just 10 minutes to complete and needs to be completed before Sunday 18 December.

The consultation can be found at https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/electric-vehicle-charging-study