The Mirror’s Discover editor Victoria Chessum highlights one less spoken about issue which still makes her curious about the future of EVs in Britain
This time last year, I took the plunge and ditched my VW T-Cross for a full-electric Mercedes EQC, a move which has come with its fair share of ups and downs.
I’ve already written various pieces on the lack of charging infrastructure across the country, an issue which affects thousands of drivers who rely on public charge-points on a weekly basis. I’ve also spoken about the often limited range of such vehicles and the anxiety that can come with the prospect of running out of battery on a long journey.
But there’s another, far less spoken about, element which still gives me anxiety as a driver. And that’s how quiet nearly all electric cars appear to be. Only a few weeks ago did I drive down a private rural road, with a 15mph speed limit, and make a pedestrian walking her dog jump out of her skin, simply because she didn’t hear the quiet churn of the EV.
I was crawling down the road at less than 10mph fully aware that she probably hadn’t sensed the car, and despite my best efforts, I still startled her. She wasn’t wearing headphones, and I was the only moving car on the road – which meant the subtle EV sound was not drowned out by anything else.
In comparison to a diesel vehicle, electric cars make a very dull whirring sound, almost like a space ship. They sound futuristic and high-tech, and from my experience so far, no two models sound the same. For example the Audi equivalent of my car is ever-so-slightly louder.
Like everyone here in Britain, I am used to the loud sound of cars whizzing past, some with obnoxiously loud exhausts, large lorries thundering down the road.
But with Keir Starmer’s 2030 electric vehicle pledge, which will stop the sale of petrol and diesel cars completely in five years’ time, that will change.
This is not a nostalgia plea by any stretch, but the hard-of-hearing population, or those who are blind or partially sighted, rely on prominent sound to stay safe when crossing the road. And children who are learning to cross a road, or even the dangers of a main road, will now need to be way more observant when the louder vehicles fall silent as more and more people are forced to go full electric.
My car is five years’ old, it’s relatively new, but I do often wonder if newer versions will be slightly louder to bridge the huge decibel gap that’s currently there between electric and fuelled cars. Along with a synthetic sound, my car makes a very dull bleeping sound when in reverse, with cameras in play to ensure no one, person or vehicle, is behind me. The onus is always on the driver to make sure the area is safe, and that should never change.
But the reason the reverse sensors give out a quiet sound is because drivers will always reverse at low speed, and EVs are designed to only get substantially louder when the car is above a certain mph.
EVs must have sound, it’s the law
EVs don’t have engines, therefore their sound is synthetic. The only noise people will hear naturally is the sound of tyres on the tarmac – after all, many EVs are heavier than their fuelled-counterparts due to the weight of the battery.
According to PodPoint, an EV charging company, their quiet sound is not a major design flaw. It’s there to avoid noise pollution above all. It says: “The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared traffic noise – which includes roads, rail, and air – as the second leading cause of negative health in western Europe.
“The WHO recommends that people aren’t exposed to noise exceeding 53 decibels (dB) during the day-night period caused by road traffic. Anything over 75 dB has the potential to damage our ears.”
It says the legal limit for vehicles is 72 decibels, but this could be reduced to 68 by next year. For EVs the legal requirement is 56 decibels.
That doesn’t stop the concern as the country makes the gradual transition to electric cars.
EVs made after July 1, 2019 had to comply with an EU law called the Regulation on the Sound Level of Motor Vehicles. This means cars must make a sound when they are driven at 12.4mph when going forwards or reversing.
This external noise is produced by an acoustic vehicle alert system (AVAS) which would warn other road users of their presence. When inside the car you can barely hear it – but that doesn’t mean it’s not doing its job.
Is the answer a louder noise box – or simply a more realistic sounding car that imitates an engine? I don’t know, but within the next decade our roads are going to sound a whole lot quieter.
While I am here for it, all walks of life must be catered for in terms of safety – and until then, EV drivers like myself will need to be more vigilant and understanding of people who simply do not know we are there.