LONDON, March 29 (UPI) -- London dismissed claims from the European Commission that said phasing out conventional vehicles could help cut carbon emissions by 60 percent.
The European Commission called for a shift in consumer travel patterns to cut reliance on oil and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 60 percent by 2050.
European Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas said the measure didn't need to be a major inconvenience to the average commuter.
"The widely held belief that you need to cut mobility to fight climate change is simply not true," he was quoted by the BBC as saying. "We can break the transport system's dependence on oil without sacrificing its efficiency and compromising mobility."
Kallas called for a 50 percent reduction in the number of conventionally fueled vehicles in city centers by 2030 and a total ban by 2050.
The British government, for its part, is pursuing a $27 billion high-speed rail system from London and is weighing an $8,000 discount to commuters choosing to buy an electric vehicle.
British Transport Minister Norman Baker, however, was quoted as saying London wasn't getting rid of cars anytime soon.
"We will not be banning cars from city centers anymore than we will be having rectangular bananas," he said.
