The Scottish government says it will take action to phase out the need for new diesel and petrol cars and vans by 2032. The plans were included in the government's recently launched "Programme for Scotland."
Among a range of goals, Scottish authorities said they would expand their electric charging infrastructure between now and 2022 and also speed up the procurement of ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs) in the public and private sectors.
On Tuesday, Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said we were living in a time of "unprecedented global challenge and change" and that we faced a "moral obligation to tackle climate change."
The moves were welcomed by environmental groups. "With transport the single biggest contributor to climate change in Scotland, we're delighted the first minister has heeded the call of thousands of people across Scotland to cut pollution from our cars," WWF Scotland's acting head of policy, Gina Hanrahan, said in a statement on Tuesday.
"Decarbonising our transport sector in fifteen years will create new jobs, cut emissions and clean up our polluted air," Hanrahan added. "This announcement will help accelerate the shift to electric vehicles and sets us up to lead the technologies of the future."
