A new report from Cambridge Econometrics suggests that efforts to increase fuel efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and clean up urban air pollution will deliver a double dividend in Britain; energy efficient vehicles will reduce the amount of money British consumers spend on fuel while at the same time reducing the nation’s carbon footprint.
The report states that changes already underway in the automobile industry could cut emissions from private vehicles in the UK by 47% by 2030 and 80% by 2050. What’s more, the average driver would save £600 (CAN$1100) per year in refueling costs. From a national perspective, the total cost of renewing and fuelling the UK car fleet would be £7 billion lower for low-carbon vehicles in 2030 than if the fleet were to continue running on today’s technology. With an increased percentage of electricity coming from renewable domestic sources, British consumers would also be insulated from global oil price shocks and the nation as whole would reduce its dependence on foreign oil.