The congestion surrounding Parramatta points to a city under pressure. From Windsor Road to Pennant Hills Road to the Great Western Highway, petrol-powered cars and diesel trucks splutter exhaust fumes into the atmosphere.
Already, the transport sector is our city’s largest source of carbon pollution. Projections that the population will soar by another 200,000 people over the next 20 years only increase Parramatta’s share of Sydney’s carbon footprint. And the sheer number of extra cars on the road will make it near-impossible for NSW to reach its goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
Expanding public transport, ridesharing, walking, cycling and new forms of micro-mobility such as e-scooters all have a role to play in decarbonising cities. As the pandemic has popularised technologies such as video conferencing, business aviation is yet to fully rebound. However, the greatest “bang for buck” in reducing transport emissions is likely to come from phasing out combustion engines in favour of battery-powered electric vehicles (supplemented by hydrogen alternatives), sourced from an ever-increasing share of renewables in the grid.
For all their other problems, the trains in Sydney are already electric; the transition of the bus fleet is underway. However, electric car sales in Australia lag at about two to three per cent of new purchases every year – well behind the UK and US, let alone pacesetters such as the Netherlands and Norway.
NSW is proving to be a genuine leader in this regard, pledging to increase electric sales to more than 50 per cent of new cars sold by 2030 and the vast majority of purchases by 2035. Consciously differentiating from Scott Morrison’s incendiary claim in 2019 that Federal Labor’s electric vehicles target would “end the weekend”, the Perrottet Government is also offering $3,000 rebates on eligible purchases and waiving stamp duty.
Now, the Albanese Government promises stronger complementary policies at the national level.
The UK, Sweden, India, Israel and Germany are all banning the sale of internal combustion engine cars by 2030. By contrast, the absence of a ban, or even a price signal, creates an incentive for global manufacturers to dump their dirtiest vehicles on the Australian market.
As Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen noted recently, we are one of the very few OECD nations without compulsory car emissions standards. Rectifying this situation will help stimulate the transition towards cleaner technologies. It will also give Australians access to a wider array of vehicle models at an affordable price.
Most people would agree that a family should have the same opportunity to drive a Tesla in Wentworthville as in Woollahra. In western Sydney, where residents tend to be more car-dependent but have lower average incomes, new policies and incentive schemes can bring entry price points within reach.
However, the ability to afford an electrical car (which then has significantly lower running costs than a petrol-powered vehicle) is not the only equity consideration.
Another is that every Sydneysider should have access to charging services close to where they live.
While an electric vehicle can fully recharge within 20 hours when placed in a standard power socket, it is hard to imagine poorer families having access to special “fast-charging” facilities at home.
In addition, while planning instruments such as the Telopea and Melrose Park development control plans are being updated to guarantee electric vehicle charging in new units, the rights of residents to retrofit older blocks is less clear.
Therefore, a national network of charging infrastructure is necessary from the motorway to the residential kerbside.
Complementing an increasingly well-funded national and state rollout, City of Parramatta has three electric vehicle charging stations covering six parking spots in the CBD. In the eastern suburbs, charging is available at shopping centres, community and recreational centres and Bondi and Coogee Beach.
We could see it become standard on parking meters and telegraph poles, as ubiquitous as the petrol station of today, with Siri pointing us to the nearest socket.
It used to be the stuff of science fiction – but the road network of the future is coming faster than we think.
Alan is a journalist and communications specialist. He writes a weekly column for Parra News.