Move Over, Formula 1…Here Comes Formula E
What’s the Latest Development?
Later this year, demonstration runs will be held for Formula E, a racing championship series that will feature all-electric cars. The first competitions are scheduled for 2014 in Rio de Janeiro and Rome, with London as a possible third location. Like Formula 1 races held in Monte Carlo, existing city streets will be converted into a temporary track, but unlike those races, the cars will make very little noise and create almost no pollution. The cars themselves are expected to look like their gas-guzzling counterparts, with some differences: Due to battery limitations, drivers will have to swap cars mid-race.
What’s the Big Idea?
It’s the latest racing series to be sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), which governs motorsports worldwide. Formula E Holdings CEO Alejandro Agag says the competition is in line with where motor travel is headed overall: “We are convinced that the future of auto motion, particularly in cities, is electric…The promotion of clean mobility and sustainability is a priority for the FIA, so joining forces to set up the first sustainable global motorsport championship is a great opportunity for us.”
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