The environmental law centres at UCLA and UC Berkeley Schools of Law have published “Electric Drive by ’25’, analysing actions needed to ensure that California catalyses mass adoption of electric vehicles by 2025, with the goal of building a long-term market in the US.
“Increased adoption of electric vehicles will improve California’s environment and economy”, states the report. At stake is the future of the electric vehicle market. California accounts for 11 percent of the national market for annual new car sales, as well as more than 20 percent of non plug-in hybrid vehicle sales in the US. With such a significant market share and volume of cars, California can help launch a sustainable and more robust electric vehicle market, with the country and world benefitting as a result.
Top three barriers to mass consumer EV adoption
The report highlights the following three obstacles as among the most significant:
- Lack of consumer awareness and information. Many consumers are unfamiliar with electric vehicles and their performance, while at the same time they may harbor common misperceptions about vehicle types, safety, range, impact on their electricity bills, and other facets of electric vehicle ownership.
- Lack of appeal to a broader market. The higher initial costs and limited battery range of some electric vehicles may make them less attractive to a broader market segment beyond early adopters.
- Lack of access to charging infrastructure outside of the home. Potential electric vehicle customers may be deterred by a non-home charging infrastructure that seems inadequate, difficult to navigate, and unpredictable in its pricing.
Summary of solutions to overcome the long-term EV challenges
Based on a workshop discussion, this paper identifies the actions that EV manufacturers, stakeholders, advocates, and government leaders can take to ensure that California catalyses mass adoption of electric vehicles by 2025. Policy-makers, industry leaders, and advocates will need to:
- Educate consumers, the media, and elected officials through a simple and effective outreach campaign about the benefits and joy of driving electric vehicles;
- Reduce fees, taxes, and upfront costs for electric vehicle owners and invest in battery research; and
- Plan for and facilitate deployment of a well-planned and easy-to-use charging infrastructure network.
Conclusion: The Future of Electric Vehicles
California has a strong interest in promoting the adoption of electric vehicles, based on the benefits to the economy, environment, and quality of life. With electric vehicle sales likely to increase in the long term given projected improvements to battery life and likely cost reductions, the state should begin planning now to address the challenges associated with large-scale adoption of the vehicle technologies. Heightened public awareness, easy access to financing, reduced barriers to purchase, and a well-planned and maintained charging infrastructure will help the state become a leader in electric vehicle deployment by 2025. The state and local momentum to facilitate consumer adoption of electric vehicles will ultimately help California contribute to the global changes now underway in how consumers power their vehicles.
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