government backs away from plan to fully convert State vehicle fleet to electric or hybrid

The government says it is not possible to make a full transition of the State vehicle fleet to either electric or hybrid by 2025 due to the current environment.

The former regime in Budget 2018 announced plans to convert the State vehicle fleet fully electric or hybrid by 2025 in a phased-out manner and to fully convert the country’s vehicle population to electric or hybrid by 2040.
However, the Cabinet Co-Spokesperson and the Minister of Mass Media Dullas Alahapperuma addressing the weekly Cabinet media briefing yesterday said that the target is not possible under the current environment where the government has imposed restrictions on vehicle imports to avert a Balance of Payment (BoP) account crisis.
According to data, the transport sector is responsible for a majority of the country’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

In particular, the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) has expressed concerns on air quality levels dropping in Colombo and Kandy districts, with around 150-160 micrograms of micro particles per cubic metre in the atmosphere below the levels recommended by the World Health Organization.

Alahapperuma noted that the government is currently considering bringing down 100 electric buses for public transport targeting Colombo District as a pilot project.