Been thinking about Electric cars recently? A lot of people have. Far from a novelty, Electric Cars become a more common sight on the road with each passing year. And all the car brands are starting to come out with their own versions. The big question is: should you switch to electric? Or is their value in those regular old gas-powered cars yet?
Environmental Argument
The first thing to figure out is why anyone would want to switch to an electric because there’s plenty of reasons to choose from, some more valid than others. The biggest and most widely felt one is probably the environmental argument. Electric vehicles (EVs) cause no air pollution like regular cars and are much better for the environment. Studies have found that EV’s contribute almost 60% less to carbon emissions than traditional cars of the same size.
It’s important to remember that this number is highly dependent on where you live, after all the power in the battery isn’t magic, it comes from the electric grid and if the power in your area is generated via a fossil fuel plant then that 60% could become a lot less, however likely still better than a traditional car.
Economic Argument
An EV will initially cost you more money, however that doesn’t mean there aren’t a lot of financial benefits to switching over to electric. Some of that initial cost can be offset by tax rebates offered by the Canadian Government on EVs.
Costs after the initial purchase will also be much lower. EVs have significantly fewer parts, which means less things which are likely to break, as well as the most obvious: No Fuel required.
There will be an extra cost on your home electrical bill, however that cost will be significantly less than the equivalent amount of Gas, around 5 times less to be precise.
As EVs become more and more mainstream, it’s likely that the initial costs will come down and become more competitive, and with that the tax rebates will start to disappear too, however the ownership savings will stay the same
Counter Argument
So far this is all sounding pretty good, so what exactly is the catch? What are the reasons not to switch? A lot of the drawbacks of EV’s are case specific, but they may still apply to you.
EVs have a limited range compared to traditional cars. There are a lot more petrol stations around than there are charging stations. As well as that, charging a car just takes longer than filling it up with petrol. To be honest, though this is only really an issue if you’re planning a big road trip. For daily use, commuting, and shopping, you probably won’t feel this limitation at all.
As well as that, as EVs become more common, so too will charging stations to match.
There have also been some concerns that there will be more accidents due to the EV’s lack of noise, however, that’s yet to be verified, and as EV’s spread seems more and more like a false concern.
So, should you switch to electric? Honestly, we’re running out of reasons as to why you shouldn’t.