Private sector leading electric vehicle charge

General Motors this week star tled the automotive world with a deeper commitment to electric cars into the next decade, a timely reminder of how quickly things are changing because of advancing technology and the public’s growing acceptance of vehicles that operate on electricity.

What seemed like a futuristic dream has become entirely plausible, thanks to automotive pioneers like Tesla whose all-electric vehicles can be seen, infrequently, on Ontario’s highways.

Governments have been encouraging the adoption of electric vehicles for some time through public policy and financial incentives. But the vehicles’ ultimate success has always depended on the willingness of private corporations to convince buyers of the electric car’s value.

GM on Monday unveiled plans to roll out two new electric vehicles over the next 18 months and 20 over the next six years. But more importantly, the corporation’s head of product development said, “General Motors believes in an all-electric future.”

Outside of public policy and financial incentives, governments have done surprisingly little in providing for the type of infrastructure necessary to support such a vast paradigm shift in transportation. But what should government do?

Over a century ago, when the automobile was becoming a dominant feature in Canada and the U.S., it was left to private interests to provide the infrastructure for fuel and service. It became public policy that government should assume responsibility for improved public roads, but that came only after the advocacy of automobile leagues and associations. Tens of billions of dollars have since been spent developing a network of roads and highways, all of it funded by public money, under the implied belief that such development is good public policy.

The world is far more complex today. Although the automobile was developed without government comment, the electric vehicle has been actively encouraged by public policy and legislation. California in 1995 set the tone with legislation demanding that for companies selling vehicles in that state, at least two per cent of sales must be electric. Major cities in Europe now have targets to ban fuel-driven vehicles from their streets.

Companies like GM are being driven by two forces: The public’s growing acceptance of electric vehicles, and legislative prodding by government. It’s a challenge to understand which force is greater — and it really doesn’t matter. The electric car is coming.

— Peter Epp