Letter: There’s really no need to worry about the drivers of electric cars

It is kind of Mr Knight (Buxton Advertiser letters, August 10), to warn us of the waste of energy by car drivers keeping their foot on the brake pedal at traffic lights.

As he says, it’s not a lot but it’s unnecessary and can add up.He needn’t worry himself about drivers of electric vehicles though. Most modern electric cars would need to have the brake pedal depressed day and night for over four months continuously before they would run out of charge.His concern should really be directed at drivers of petrol and diesel cars.On these vehicles, the battery that powers the brake lights is charged from the engine.Despite over 150 years of development, these engines are still only about 30 per cent efficient in their use of energy.Seventy per cent of the energy in the polluting fuel that powers these cars ends up as heat and noxious gases in our town and never gets near the brake lights.

Andrew Parker

There's no need to worry about the drivers of electric cars, says a letter writer this week, as the problem lies elsewhere.

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