Are we building the wrong electric cars beautifully?

MIT stackable EV concept - already 5 years old.

Do you have a vision for the future of personal mobility?

If the population continues to rise?
If more and more people live in cities?
If the roads become gridlocked?
If oil becomes too expensive to use in cars? Or the supply too unreliable?

Do you think plug-in hybrids and range extended cars are the answer to these issues? The best solution because they are the incremental solution? Because they allow us to drive further and faster (for now)? Or the one that lulls us into a false sense of security because they make it seem like we don't really have to change?  Even though we know that developing cars that still require oil to fuel them makes no sense from an economic, environmental or energy security sense? Are we building the wrong cars beautifully?

Consider this scenario:

Car ownership gives way to car usership. Car sharing programmes average 1 car for 24 drivers compared to car ownership, which averages 1.2 cars for 1 driver. Share schemes become the norm, such as the Paris Autolib and the London Bike share scheme.

All cars are 100% electric, a core component of the smart grid and the smart city. Electric cars for commuting shift to small one-plus-one seat vehicles with low cost, low speed configurations such as the Renault Twizy. Electric cars for family needs offer a maximum range of 300 miles per charge.

Development of the smart grid, mass adoption of batteries and micro-generation from renewables delivers affordable prices and secure energy supplies.

Extended range travel requirements are delivered by high speed trains complimented by high availability of fast charging stations for EVs and by connecting EV parcs to train stations.

A single large city is selected by government to focus resources and to create a showcase for the technology and systems, with government and industry collaborating on the investment required to ensure appropriate pricing and penetration levels.

Is this so difficult? The shocks (climate, oil, nuclear, economic, political) are coming thick and fast, much faster than the rate at which we are anticipating and preparing for them. Why not break away from our incrementalist thinking in order to de-risk our transport system and deliver a clean, secure, viable future?