One way to encourage people to adopt electric vehicles is to make them easier to own, such as tax incentives or other perks.
For example, in many places, you can get government tax incentives to help defray the costs of an electric vehicle and home charging station. Typically, the technology in electric vehicles drives up the price, so tax incentives are helpful in that respect. At the same time, some places also offer other perks, like access to the HOV (high occupancy vehicle) lanes or free municipal parking. Depending on where you live, however, there are limits to these incentives and perks.
For example, the incentives in Norway have been driving the sales of electric vehicles, so much, in fact, that electric vehicles are the best-selling vehicles in the country, no matter what powertrain you consider. For September, 2013, the Tesla Model S was the country’s best-selling vehicle, supplanted by the Nissan Leaf, which was the country’s best-selling vehicle in October, 2013. Electric vehicles have proven so popular, in fact, that Norway is running close to exhausting the money set aside for electric vehicle incentives and perks.
Aside from tax incentives on the purchase of an electric vehicle in Norway, owners also have access to perks, such as free parking, HOV lanes, free ferries, and toll-free highways. Norway also has one of the world’s most-extensive electric vehicle charging networks. Right now, there are about 21,000 electric vehicles on Norway’s roads, but Norway was only planning on subsidizing the first 50,000 electric vehicles in the country. Judging by the numbers, Norwegians may run out of electric vehicle sales incentives by mid-2015, two-and-a-half years ahead of schedule!
Of course, electric vehicles selling so well in Norway is a great thing, especially since the power grid is mostly hydroelectric. Additionally, just because the program is running out doesn’t mean that Norway can’t make an extension or expansion for it. Of course, depending on the financial situation, it could go either way, but hopefully in a direction that gets more people into electric vehicles.
Image © Nissan
