THE FUTURE OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Industry and government are finally on the same page about where the auto industry is headed — and for us it means cleaner air and healthier lives
CARS AND TRUCKS are responsible for a whopping 20 percent of the U.S.’s warming emissions, but that could be changing drastically in the coming years. The much-heralded, long-delayed future of the electric car is finally coming into view. The next two decades will see more than 320 million electric vehicles hit the roads, according to the research firm Wood Mackenzie, with annual sales reaching 45 million by 2040.
In January, GM announced it would phase out combustion engines in its consumer cars and trucks by 2035. Ford followed suit in February, announcing it would sell only electric vehicles by 2030 in Europe. That continent’s biggest automaker, Volkswagen, has staked a $90 billion bet on electrifying its vehicles, and plans to produce more than 20 million electric cars this decade. Volvo plans to sell only electric vehicles by 2030, with its chief technologist insisting, “There is no long-term future for cars with an internal combustion engine.” Even Toyota, which has long pushed hybrid vehicles, announced in February that it will launch a pair of all-electric cars for 2022.
The barriers for consumers are continuing to drop as well. Electric vehicles are no longer just playthings for the wealthy. There are nearly a dozen EVs on the U.S. market already that are priced below $40,000, which are even cheaper after a $7,500 federal tax rebate. Charging times are also dropping — with some models needing just 15 minutes for 200 miles’ worth of juice — and ranges are increasing, with the top EVs traveling more than 350 miles per charge.
The models are also growing more varied, from sport cars to subcompacts, with a slate of electric pickup trucks, including a Ford F-150, set to hit the market in the next few years. The research firm AutoPacific projects American consumers will have 100 EV models to choose from by 2030. And the infrastructure to charge them is following suit: Shell just announced plans to create a global network of 500,000 stations — up from 60,000 today — by 2025.