CAMDEN Town will be the starting point for an environmentally friendly road trip to the Continent

Josie Hinton

CAMDEN Town will be the starting point for an environmentally friendly road trip to the Continent.

Adventurous eco warriors Omar Sattaur and Hiral Dixit, both 21, will be swapping petrol guzzling cars for electric mopeds to make their journey to Brussels.

The Westminster University media students' aim is to test the comfort and reliability of the vehicles over long distances and gauge if they could take the place of petrol cars on London's streets.

Mr Sattaur, who relies on cars a lot for his everyday life, said: "We're all petrol car drivers and we all often use big vehicles to move equipment around. I think we all feel a nagging guilt that we should really be doing more for the environment.

"Everyone knows that electric cars and bikes exist but not a lot is known about them. We wanted to test them out and give them a fair trial, in the hope that it would make people consider them as an option."

Also by their side will be photographer and cameraman Solim Maih, 22, who will be filming the journey for a documentary.

The group hopes to show the film at the London Motor Show in July to raise awareness about electric vehicles and spark discussion about eco-friendly transport options for the future.

The adventure seekers will begin their journey in Camden Town on March 24 and hope to arrive in Brussels less than 20 days later.

They will be stopping along the way to meet petrol heads and bikers and will challenge them to swap petrol for electricity.

The electric mopeds are being supplied free of charge by Camden-based Zipee Bikes, which specialises in 'zero pollution' vehicles.

The bikes can accelerate up to 25km per hour but in the UK they are restricted to a 15km per hour limit.

Mr Sattaur said they were aiming to do up to 40 miles a day and had planned to stop four times for re-charging at electricity points.

Director of Zipee Bikes, Naomi Aptowitzer, said: "I hope the event will highlight the need to look at alternative transport solutions.

"We need to raise awareness for transport options that provide not only the best economic value but, more importantly, ones which are not harmful to the environment."

Zipee Bikes trade out of My Village, an organic cafe in Chalk Farm Road. For more information visit www.zipeebikes.co.uk. Visit www.electricbikestickleeurope.blogspot.com to see the students' blog of the trip.

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