News 27 Mar 2017

Major transport and energy groups sound alarm on e-mobility: Europe must accelerate infrastructure plans

Europe’s key industry players and NGOs push Member States to show more urgency and publish their plans for crucial e-mobility infrastructure

The EU needs to accelerate its electro-mobility (e-mobility) revolution according to the organizations that will lead it in the coming decade. The diverse group – including some of the most well known companies and NGOs in Europe - wants EU member states to show much more urgency in their plans to harness the diverse range of technologies needed to make clean electricity the dominant power source for transport, both between and within European cities.

As Nicolas Erb, Chair of the Platform on Electro-mobility, noted: "Europe has a huge opportunity to win on so many fronts with e-mobility. For a start, we’ll recover the €1 billion or so a day Europe currently spends on high-polluting oil; we’ll hugely increase access to mobility; we’ll create high-quality jobs and we’ll save countless lives by cutting air pollution. Just look at railways, from trams to high-speed trains, which are already largely electrified and much more energy-efficient than other modes."

CER Executive Director Libor Lochman added: "About 80% of Europe’s rail traffic is already electrified. Being one of the most sustainable and environmentally friendly modes of transport, the rail sector already contributes to seamless door-to-door electro-mobility.

Nicolas Erb further stated: "E-mobility may be a quiet revolution but it’s a crucial one. Besides metros and tramways, there are now over two million electric vehicles on the world’s roads – so we are at a tipping point – but we need to change-up a gear to really make it happen. And that’s what the 25 organizations that form our Platform are calling for today". 

To read the full press release, follow this link or download it below.

For more information on the Electro-mobility Platform, visit their website.