Willowbank Raceway is the latest racetrack to ban electric cars. According to the people behind the ban, it is about safety.
To be safe, Willowbank Raceway, near Ipswich in Queensland, Australia, has chosen to ban all electric cars from the racetrack.
The ban means that electric street cars may not participate in lobs or test races at the facility. The decision was made with reference to the track staff's fear of possible fires. However, the management has chosen not to criminalize hybrid cars.
Management behind Willowbank Raceway, which has been in existence since 1985, announced their decision in a press release .
Here it is also made clear that electric cars must already stay away.
– After thorough consideration and investigations, Willowbank Raceway has decided that we can no longer allow street cars powered by electricity to lap or test at Willowbank Raceway, it reads.
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The safety issue surrounding electric cars has proven to be complex. Especially because of the need for extensive equipment and extra training for rescue personnel.
Burning batteries in electric cars can be difficult to extinguish and often require additional resources when compared to burning fuel in petrol and diesel cars.
However, recent surveys, which have also been carried out in Denmark, show that electric cars generally catch fire less often than both hybrid and petrol cars.
The decision by the Australian Track Board has already created quite a debate among motorists in general. Some are frustrated and believe that it is only a matter of hype from the owners of petrol and diesel cars, because the electric cars are straight out faster.
Others, on the other hand, are happy with the change and prefer to see more traditional racing cars with large V8 engines on the track rather than the electric cars.
The management behind Willowbank are certainly not the only ones who have banned electric cars from racetracks. Summit Point Raceway in West Virginia, USA, introduced the same ban in 2023. And earlier this year, a similar ban came into effect at the Anglesey Circuit in Wales. However, both tracks have also banned hybrid cars.
It is not only on racetracks that electric cars have been banned. Back in May, an entire country banned electric cars on ferries. Read more about it here.
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