Charging, range anxiety, and price still barriers to mass EV adoption—but there are potential solutions

Electric vehicle sales in Canada have grown tremendously in the last couple of years to the point where they have burst through 10 per cent of new vehicle purchases. But there’s lingering doubt whether this rate of growth will continue or if we could be coming to the end of the first great boom in EV sales. The things holding back a lot of people from taking the EV plunge are a mix of real problems and lingering myths. It’s a fact that four-in-10 Canadians buy used vehicles, and that market is in its infancy for EVs. It’s a fact that most Canadians buy pickups and SUVs, two categories in which EVs are just starting to make their mark. And it’s a fact that the average new EV is at a higher price point than an equivalent internal-combustion vehicle—a gap in pricing that may not lessen in the short term, as government incentives appear to be melting away, with Quebec being the latest to announce plans to phase them out. Kristine D’Arbelles is the CAA National senior director of public affairs. Photograph courtesy of Kristine D’Arbelles But there are some more positive facts as well: both the range of models available and the used market will continue to grow. So, to a certain extent, the market will take care of some of the reasons people hold back. Meanwhile, according to the Canadian Automobiles Association’s (CAA) recent survey of 16,000 EV drivers in Canada, satisfaction rates among EV drivers are extremely high. An overwhelming majority (97 per cent) say they will purchase another EV when it comes time to replace their existing one. To buy one is to love them, despite some of the obstacles. Nevertheless, there are a couple of key barriers outside the auto market itself that need to be addressed, as CAA research has shown. Range anxiety is still a top barrier, only behind price. The reality is that the average Canadian drives about 40 kilometres a day, making it highly unlikely they will run out of charge on the side of the road. But this myth persists, and our research shows that more than half of Canadians say they won’t purchase an EV because they worry about the vehicle’s range. This ongoing range anxiety goes beyond just the everyday drive. Two-thirds of Canadians say they won’t purchase an EV because driving range is limited on road trips. This is a more valid worry, as the charging network gets sparse once you are out of the big cities and major highway corridors. Even EV owners don’t trust the out-of-town network: more than two-thirds in our survey still own an internal-combustion engine vehicle, and more than a third of them say they prefer taking their gas vehicle on long road trips. If we want to get to mass adoption, we need to take a real hard look at our public charging infrastructure. More than one-in-four EV owners in Canada rated their satisfaction with charger reliability, location convenience, and speed of charger negatively. Our country is good at installing chargers, but not so good at maintaining them. It is important that governments require organizations who install chargers to provide a maintenance plan if they want to qualify for funding. There are too many stories of broken chargers. We believe clear and fair labelling of EV range is also crucial in building up confidence. We live in a winter country, and while studies on cold-weather performance of EVs vary, they all agree that an EV battery loses range in the cold. And yet, auto manufacturers only publish an average driving range for their vehicles, despite the fact EVs can lose up to 40 per cent of their range in the cold. These labels also need to be prominent. More than half of Canadians are not even aware that new EVs must display even the average driving range on their window sticker. And those averages come from American work from the Environmental Protection Agency. CAA believes this work should be done in Canada, under Canadian conditions, by a neutral third party such as the government. Honest, apples-to-apples figures will lead to greater consumer confidence, and fewer myths. EVs are an important part of the future. With an increased focus on getting public charging right and clear labelling of EV range, we can help increase the confidence drivers have in making the switch. Kristine D’Arbelles is the senior director, public affairs for Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) National. She strategically manages and executes communications initiatives and programs on CAA’s five pillars: road safety, environment, mobility, infrastructure, and consumer protection. D’Arbelles has been one of the lead spokespersons on CAA National’s research on EVs in Canada. The Hill Times

Charging, range anxiety, and price still barriers to mass EV adoption—but there are potential solutions

The things holding back a lot of people from taking the EV plunge are a mix of real problems and lingering myths.

Time for a shift: Canada must treat Alzheimer’s like other progressive diseases

Between wars and fears of fascism in the U.S., there’s plenty to be scared about

Poilievre can’t just ‘cat-call from the periphery’: Tom McElroy

The problem of political homelessness

Liberals have fumbled green energy transition, and Conservatives have zero interest

Trump alienates women and Puerto Rican voters

The electric-vehicle era is just getting rolling

Canada’s EV boom can go bust if the ecosystem is not ready

High prices, lack of charging infrastructure must be addressed to accommodate 100 per cent zero-emission vehicle sales by 2035, say auto industry reps

Charting a sustainable course for freight transportation

Opportunities for Canada as the EV market grows to meet rising demand

News

Get free news updates

Opinion

Submit a guest opinion article

resources

Advertise

subscribe

get help

Charging, range anxiety, and price still barriers to mass EV adoption—but there are potential solutions

The things holding back a lot of people from taking the EV plunge are a mix of real problems and lingering myths.

Get The Policy Briefings Newsletter