I am delighted to introduce this Baseline Report for the Electric Vehicles in Urban Europe network. It sets the stage for what promises to be an exciting programme of activities that will help partner cities to make sustainable investment and delivery choices.

In London we know that we need to make electric cars, vans and motorbikes an easy choice. If we're to really achieve a revolution in green travel and meet the Mayor of London's own target of 25,000 charging points by 2015, we need to find ways to make installing them faster, cheaper and simpler.

By sharing knowledge and best practice with other European cities we can ensure that we are all at the forefront of technological developments, so that we offer a clean, green and economical alternative to petrol and diesel. It is in all our interests to make our cities more attractive and more competitive. So we welcome the opportunity to work together to get more electric cars on our treets quickly. I look forward to seeing the positive results of the network over the next two and a half years.

Dr Savas Sivetidis,
On behalf of Westminster City Council

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