Government has pledged £75M to help develop engines for cars which are more efficient and may change the way that we drive.

The money will allow businesses to make and test low carbon technologies to keep the UK at the forefront of engine design and safeguard up to 30,000 jobs, according to Business Secretary Vince Cable.

Projects will be carried out at the Advanced Propulsion Centre which Government set up in July to develop new technologies over the next 10 years.

To apply for a share of the £75M fund, bidders must form a group which includes at least one vehicle manufacturer, a small to medium sized enterprise and at least one supply chain company.

A competition for funds opens on 2 December and projects are expected to begin next April.

The announcement came on the same day that Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg challenged industry and engineers to put forward innovative ways to encourage more people to choose vehicles with the lowest possible emissions.

Elsewhere, a project soon to get under way is for driverless cars to be tried out in Milton Keynes. The cars will be able to carry two people and will run on special pathways in the centre of the town.

It is planned to have the first 20 cars in service in 2015. By the middle of 2017, a total of 100 fully automatic cars could run on pathways, with sensors used to avoid obstacles.

To return to the newsletter, please close this window.