Skip to main content

The event, held at Techniquest in Cardiff Bay, allowed visitors to see and test drive the latest electric vehicles available for purchase.

First published:
12 November 2024
Last updated:

There were also workshops and talks from EV explorers Chris and Julie Ramsey; the husband-and-wife adventurers and EV advocates who embarked on and successfully completed the Pole to Pole Expedition, a 17,000-mile route pushing the capabilities of electric vehicles to their limits.

There was also the chance to meet Guinness world record holder Kevin Booker, who achieved the 2023 Guinness World Records title for the longest distance ever driven in an electric van on a single charge – 311.18 miles.

Even Deputy First Minister Huw Irranca-Davies got involved, test driving an electric motorbike for the first time.

Deputy First Minister Huw Irranca-Davies said: 

Part of my role is ensuring that Wales plays a part in tackling climate change.

This includes reducing emissions from transport which is the third largest carbon emitting sector in Wales and this means switching the way in which we all travel.

Electric vehicles are part (but not all) of the solution, alongside fewer cars on our roads, and more of us using public transport, walking and cycling where we can.

But for many, I recognise this isn’t always practical, particularly as a large part of our country is rural. This is why we need to see a rapid shift towards zero emission technologies in vehicles alongside on-going investment in our public transport and active travel infrastructure.

The Transport Strategy for Wales explains how this will happen - first in cars, vans, trains and buses - but later in heavy goods vehicles, and finally in aeroplanes and ships. As well as supporting the switch to privately owned EVs, the Strategy describes the importance of decarbonising buses.