Electrifying our transport network is one of the key missions of the government when it comes to achieving Net Zero by 2050, but it is often met with scepticism. Are electric vehicles really sustainable? Are enough public chargepoints being delivered? Does the price of electric vehicles make zero emission driving inaccessible for many people? 

However, Shamala states that scepticism is needed to drive innovation. If people don't complain about what doesn't work, the sector won't know what it needs to address. 

In our conversation, we discuss what the industry has gotten right so far, where we are likely to head in the future and how to keep up with ever evolving technologies.

Listen here

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Shamala is a 3rd year part time postgraduate research student within the Research Institute for Clean Growth and Future Mobility at Coventry University and an experienced Senior Civil Engineer and Programme/Project Manager working as a consultant to Coventry city council. Her experience includes innovation projects in zero emission, electrification, battery storage and management; local transport plans, including network efficiency projects and waste management projects; traffic management, including traffic calming measures; general roadworks, including road geometry; and regeneration, public realm and urban environment projects.

Key quotes from the podcast

• "Electric vehicles are one solution to net zero but they are not the panacea"
• "We are still in the infancy stage of electric vehicles, a lot more evidence is required before we know what solutions will really work"
• "Let innovation and creativity expand for a while yet, don't be hasty in standardising too soon as this will halt innovation"
• "The car is learning about you, you are learning about the car"

CIHT and Electric Vehicle Charging

Have you recently worked on an electric vehicle charging project? Why not enter it into the CIHT Decarbonisation Award or the CIHT Technology and Innovation Award and get the recognition you deserve. Deadline for entries is Monday 6 March 2023.