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Thousands of Londoners could hire electric cars to travel across the city in the four-wheel version of Boris bikes under ambitious plans unveiled by Zac Goldsmith today.

The Tory mayoral candidate pledged to support plans for a car-sharing system that would allow people to hire an electric car in one part of the capital and drop it off in another.

He would back it up by creating an integrated electric charging network after experts warned Londoners often found it too difficult to find somewhere to power their electric cars.

This could include hundreds of “light and charge” lamposts where drivers could plug in their vehicles.

It came as Boris Johnson welcomed £13 million of new funding to encourage the greater use of electric and ultra-low emission vehicles, particularly targeted at providing more electric charging points in residential parts of London.

Mr Goldsmith said: “We need a ‘Boris bike’ equivalent for green cars, and that means investing in a charging network fit for the 21st century.

“Transport for London plays a major role coordinating our road, rail, tube and bus network. Now it is time for it to take a much more interventionist role in delivering a charging network for London.

“I want Londoners in every borough to have access to cleaner and cheaper transport. Doing that is impossible unless the Mayor takes a much stronger role in delivering clean cars for Londoners.”

Boris Johnson had a target of 100,000 electric cars by 2015 but Londoners currently own just 3,000, despite a range of Government tax breaks, and Mr Goldsmith said it was time for the capital to “stop stalling”.

The car hire scheme would be based on the Paris Autolib which already has 220,000 registered users and has been credited with taking 30,000 petrol and diesel cars off the streets.

The French company is setting up Bluecity, London’s first point to point electric vehicle car club, this year.

The environmentalist Tory MP’s plans are part of his wider bid to clean up London’s air and could be key to winning the second preference votes of Green voters which he will need to beat Labour’s Sadiq Khan to City Hall in May.