Over the past few years, electric vehicles have become the fixation of the auto industry, and nearly every company has sought to roll out battery-powered offerings in its lineup. However, recent reports have illustrated that consumer interest in EVs has dropped for numerous reasons, leading car companies to reevaluate their initial projections on the electric revolution in automobiles.
According to a report by Fast Company, the EV market has faced significant challenges, such as high costs relative to gasoline-powered cars, geopolitical tensions impacting the highly interconnected global supply chain, and insufficient charging infrastructure. Overall, consumers are learning that there are many downsides to owning an EV compared to the internal combustion engine.
“EVs often get a rough ride, and sometimes with good reason, such as the issue of levies on Chinese-imported cars and the regular unavailability of chargers,” explained Aidan Rushby, CEO and founder of vehicle finance and insurance company Carmoola. “Additionally, the industry faces broader issues such as supply chain disruptions and varying global regulations that could impact EV availability and pricing.”
However, recent research from the University of Michigan discovered that there is broad price parity when considering overall expenses between gas-powered cars and EVs, where each has unique opportunities for cost savings. Nonetheless, the purchasing price of EVs remains significantly more expensive than the average price of gasoline cars, serving as a powerful disincentive for many consumers still strained by persistent inflation.
Furthermore, one of the biggest concerns regarding the practicality of EVs is range anxiety. The current state of battery technology is far inferior to the distance that gasoline engines travel. This makes long-distance driving highly impractical, especially when considering the lack of available charging stations in the U.S. Estimates from EVAdoption indicate that the U.S. will require nearly 3 million stations by 2030.
Ultimately, these variables regarding EVs have led industry analysts to slash the lofty projections that were made over the past several years. Analysts at BloombergNEF cut their sales outlook for EVs through 2026 by a whopping 13 percent. Despite the current hurdles the electric market is enduring, prominent figures in the industry still maintain a hopeful long-term view.
“Anybody shopping for a new car should seriously look at the EV options,” said Luke Tonachel, director of the clean vehicles and fuels team at the Natural Resources Defense Council. “While there’s been a lot of focus and criticism of the federal charging investments, the program is really hitting its stride now,” he added. “What we’re seeing right now is a strong foundation.”
Despite Tonachel’s optimism regarding the federal investment toward charging infrastructure, The American Tribune recently reported on criticism toward Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg after the Biden administration was only able to construct “7 or 8″ charging stations with a $7.5 billion investment from President Bien’s 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
“The President’s goal is to have half a million chargers up by the end of this decade. Now in order to do a charger. It’s more than just plugging a small device into the ground. There’s utility work and this is also really a new category of federal investment. But we’ve been working with each of the 50 States every one of them is getting formula dollars to do this work, engaging them and the first handful,” Buttigieg said. Watch the Transportation Secretary get called out below:
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