Electric car too zippy for minister

AS HE hailed electric cars as the future of motoring in France, government minister Arnaud de Montebourg got behind the wheel of a new Renault Zoe in the centre of Paris... and immediately smashed the speed limit.

Although he was not caught by a speed camera, he had a TV crew sitting in the car with him who showed he was doing 66kph in the 50kph Paris street - going 32% over the legal limit.

The Industrial Renewal Minister used the car to arrive at yesterday's cabinet meeting at the Élysée where he was announcing measures to promote electric vehicles - a key project for French motor manufacturers.

But as he and his chauffeur drove off later with the TV crew inside filming, he asked to take over the wheel to show how it drove - and with a little "Ça y va!" "Here we go!" stepped on the accelerator... to hit 66kph.

See for yourself on the BFMTV link on TouTube.

Montebourg said the Zoe drove very well "very gentle" and said it was perfect for city or town journeys. It was ideal for France, he said, where 85% of people drove less than 60km a day.

Among the measures to encourage people to buy electric, it was announced that owners would get cheaper parking and cheaper motorway tolls. A €7,000 eco-bonus rebate for buyers was announced earlier this week in the government's budget measures.

Montebourg said he is looking at a massive increase in the number of recharging points where people will get a rapid "fill up" for their batteries, or battery-swap in the case of Renaults.

A working group has been asked to report by the end of the year on plans to increase the number of bornes de recharge from the present 2,000 across France to the target of 75,000 by 2015 and 400,000 by 2020.
Screengrab: http://youtu.be/dRnMlCwKCgk