Some idea of the impact the onslaught of new price-driven Chinese electric cars is having on the European car industry has come from a statement from the Volkswagen Group.

The German company citing economic pressures, and the high costs associated with manufacturing, could force its first ever plant closure in the company’s 87-year history. Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume suggesting the European automotive industry is in a very demanding and serious situation and Germany as a manufacturing location is falling behind in terms of competitiveness. Of the Group’s products, the VW brand is struggling the most despite going to great lengths to cut costs last year, missing its cost cutting target of 10 billion euros (A$16.6 billion) by nearly 30 per cent. VW also failed to recover its sales after the pandemic, losing 500,000 annual units, with no recovery in sight due to mounting cost of living pressures and a shift in customer demand. Along with other Volkswagen Group products Porsche Audi, Bentley and others the company ended 2023 with a production tally of 9 million units – well short of the total 14 million capacity.

Electric car sales in Germany have dropped by 69 percent this year partly due to the government dropping incentives at the end of last year. This on top of Tesla and new Chinese brands with improved battery technology offering sharper prices despite punishing new tariffs. As such, the German government is re-introducing electric vehicle (EV) incentives, targeting higher-end company cars with huge savings. With a 40-per cent depreciation allowance together with the lowering of a buyer’s taxable income and the introduction of a higher price cap the savings are substantial – taking an Audi Q8 e-tron or BMW i4 M50 for example, the owner will pay around A$390 per month, down from a previous A$1600 per month. The top end subsidies are interesting given that the volume European carmakers are the ones suffering currently, most operating factories at unprofitable levels.

The world slowdown in electric car uptake has also seen Volvo announce it has dropped plans to only sell electric cars from 2030 and will now further develop hybrid power beyond that date. The Swedish company claiming it will now aim for only 90 to 100 percent of its sales to be electric by that date, the remaining 0-10 percent to be mild hybrid. The major about face comes after it announced in 2021 that it would become a full electric car company by 2030. To further confuse the issue Volvo Australia has been preparing to go full electric by 2026, four years ahead of its parent. Volvo Australia currently only has one electric vehicle - the small EX30 SUV, which has quickly become its second best-seller behind the mid-sized XC40.

Data used by Sydney’s Lord Mayor Clover Moore to justify cycleways found to be grossly exaggerated

Small business owners in the CBD are furious that figures used to justify cycle lanes in the city have been grossly overstated. Business owners in Oxford Street Paddington conducted their own survey of bike usage and found their figures were around 10 per cent of the figures stated by Sydney City Council. The survey found only 300 cyclists use the shopping strip in a 24-hour period, far less than the 2,701 cyclists quoted daily by council.

In its 2022-23 budget Sydney City Council set aside over $69 million for bicycle related works for the next four years, spending on average $17.35 million per year on cycle infrastructure. According to council bike usage across the city was up 18 per cent at peak hours compared to the year before. In addition to the Oxford Street cycleway the existing cycleways on Castlereagh Street and Liverpool Streets in the CBD are being extended amongst others.

The writer is familiar with Castlereagh Street, already one of Sydney’s narrowest roads, which has been further reduced by the recent bike lane extension between King and Market Streets. One way heading South it now consists of a bus lane on the left and a new bike lane on the right leaving only one lane for through traffic and those turning right into Market Street. The result, a huge amount of congestion during the evening peak.

Quite clearly the Lord Mayor’s cycle ideology has overridden the concerns of business owners in the city. Pitt Street in the very heart of the city between Bridge Street and King Street has been turned into a nightmare for deliveries and tradespeople not to mention general access at peak times. Furthermore, pedestrians have to negotiate a sea of hire bikes strewn across the footpath with few if any riders rarely seen using the cycleway.

A recent Facebook post from the Lord Mayor Clover Moore states “Started the day hearing from some residents who have concerns about bike lanes, finished the day bumping into five young gentlemen who love them! I’ve always been guided by the philosophy that we need to create a city for all. These young people love to get around on bikes and our growing cycle network helps them to do that safely.”

Quite clearly the needs of a relatively small number of cyclists mean more to the City of Sydney than the needs of the business and resident community at large. On top of that the condition of our inner-city roads are in many cases in poor condition with rough patchy surfaces and with lane and stop markings worn and barely visible.

It’s time the motorists of Sydney got a far better deal from Sydney City Council. For a start, $17.35 million a year would go a long way to improving the condition of our inner-city road network which falls well below that of Melbourne.

 

Castlereagh Street between King and Market Streets pre peak hour and the new bike lane on the right.