Ford and GM join Glasgow Declaration on zero emission vehicles, along with major cities

The Glasgow Declaration on Zero Emission Cars and Vans saw Ford and GM commit to a transition to low-emission cars by 2040, along with major cities like Seoul (South Korea) and Sao Paulo (Brazil). The declaration urges signatories to “rapidly” phase out fossil fuel cars, and the other signatories included Leaseplan — that leases out 1.7 million cars in 30 countries each year — and India, which is one of the largest automotive markets and a fast-growing base for electric vehicles. However, although other prominent automakers like Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, BYD and Jaguar Land Rover signed up as well, Toyota and Volkswagen were conspicuously absent, as were China, the US and even Germany as a whole. 

US approves $7.5bn funding to expand EV network to 500,000 chargers

The US House of Representatives approved a $7.5billion infrastructure package for e-mobility, under which the country will nearly triple its EV charging points, from 122,000 at the moment to 500,000 by 2030. The package includes provisions for chargers along highway corridors (to enable long distance travel) and for charging stations within communities to accelerate the US’s transition to EVs. A second bill soon to be tabled may also reinstate the federal tax credits for US-built EVs, a system that was nixed by the Trump administration. 

Meanwhile, a new report found that the number of EVs sold in the US had grown from 16,000 units in 2011 to 2 million at present, and a huge part of the uptake was enabled by forward-thinking legislation and the rise in popularity of Tesla.

Tesla Self Driving Mode causes crash despite driver’s attempt to course-correct
A customer in California reported that his Tesla Model Y crashed into another car while driving under full Self Driving Mode, despite the customer having been warned by the onboard controls about the car veering out of its lane and his attempts to course-correct. The accident adds to the 36 previous instances of crashes reported under Tesla’s target of futuristic, fully-autonomous vehicles, and while the accident is being investigated, Tesla was not immediately available for comments. The automaker’s full self-driving mode is an additional $10,000 upgrade on the standard Model Y and Tesla is targeting full self-driving (FSD) for all its cars to possibly increase on-road safety, but so far a full rollout of the technology has been hampered by “engineering realities”.

About The Author

Editorial Team

A team of handpicked and dedicated writers committed to fact check each climate-related statement. Go to the roots and intent of each policy implemented, internationally and at home to help you understand climate better

See author's posts