State sector EVs and charging a ‘baby step’

The Government’s move to procure 422 new EVs for the public sector is “just a tiny baby step”, Greenpeace climate campaigner Amanda Larsson says.

“More electric vehicles for the public sector is a small step in the right direction. But in the face of the climate crisis, it’s just a tiny baby step at a time when this Government has both the mandate and the means to move leaps and bounds ahead on clean transport.”

Larsson says with New Zealand’s annual emissions around 80 million tonnes, the Government’s pledge amounts to cutting yearly emissions by 0.01%.

“Winning slowly on climate change is still losing,” says Larsson. “We need to see a lot more ambition from the Government on fixing the transport system, which is our fastest-growing source of emissions.

“The Government has pledged billions towards infrastructure as part of the COVID recovery and those funds would be really well spent on providing more options for people to get around by making public transport, cycling and walking accessible to more people,” she says.

“The Government needs to make it safe and easy for people to ride bikes or walk to work and school. They need to make it comfortable and affordable to choose the train or bus. The benefit is cleaner air, safer streets, a stable climate and more choice.”