It was a year into driving his daughter to school in his new electric vehicle that Phil Bellamy realised she dreaded the 10-minute daily ride – it made her feel unwell in a way no other car did. As the driver, Bellamy had no issues with the vehicle but his teenage daughters experienced nausea every time they got into it.
Studies have indicated this is a real problem – people who normally did not suffer motion sickness in a conventional car found they did in EVs. For Bellamy, 51, his family’s reluctance to travel in his car made him question the cause. He tried altering his driving manner and even purchased a different car but found the problems remained. His daughters now refuse to travel with him, if they can avoid it.
“If we’re going on a journey, they’re absolutely taking travel sickness tablets immediately. They’re not even considering coming in the car without them,” he says.
Bellamy likes driving his electric car, which is quieter and smoother compared with the vibrations of a traditional combustion-engine vehicle, but hopes manufacturers will address the worries of passengers affected by motion sickness. The reasons for the sickness could include the relatively brisk acceleration of EVs compared with petrol cars, their regenerative braking systems and an absence of sensory cues such as engine noise and vibrations when travelling in a car.
Research conducted in China, a major producer of electric cars, found that EVs were linked to more severe motion sickness symptoms than fuel-powered vehicles.
Atiah Chayne, a content creator from London, posted on TikTok about her experiences of car sickness in EVs this summer when she ordered Ubers to take her out. Chayne says “extreme nausea” came on very quickly and stopped immediately after she exited the vehicle, but it took her a while to realise it only happened in EVs. She now avoids using Ubers as it’s hard to find one that isn’t an EV.
Chayne says: “It usually started quickly soon after we moved off. I’d say it got really bad one minute into the journey. I would put the windows down and go on my phone to distract myself. The sickness was constantly there throughout the whole journey. If your Uber is 20 minutes away from your destination, you’re counting down the minutes until you get out.”
John Golding, a professor of applied psychology at the University of Westminster in London, says motion sickness specifically affects passengers because it is, largely, connected to being able to anticipate shifts in movement. While drivers control the car’s motion, passengers do not – particularly those seated in the back – and he thinks this could become more problematic with the possible introduction of self-driving vehicles.
He says the car industry is aware of motion sickness problems for some people in EVs and is exploring ways to help passengers predict changes in movement, such as seat vibrations that alert the passenger when the car is turning.
Golding says people can also either take motion sickness medication or make behavioural adjustments. “The simplest thing is to sit in the front to get a view. Avoid moving your head too much, don’t look at your phone or start reading; that makes things much worse. If you can get some fresh air, that will help,” he says.
How to cope with motion sickness
Experts and the NHS recommend behavioural changes, medication and acupressure bands could help.
Sit at the front
Knowing what’s happening around you is the best way to prevent motion sickness. It lets you see and anticipate what will happen next, whereas in the back the view just flashes by, says Golding.
Try motion sickness medications
These are available as patches or tablets from pharmacies and help regulate how your brain and body respond to motion. They should be taken before travelling.
Wear acupressure bands
These are believed to help some people, though research indicates probably through a placebo effect. “Placebo effects can be very, very strong. If they work for an individual, don’t knock it,” Golding says.
Listen to a 100hz sound for a minute
Research from Japan’s Nagoya University suggests vibrations at this frequency might help by stimulating a part of the inner ear that senses gravity and acceleration.
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