EV Technology
Climate change is an urgent problem
but there are many solutions available to us now. It makes sense to focus on
the areas where we can make the biggest changes. One of those areas is
transportation. The transportation sector is responsible for more than a
quarter of all heat-trapping emissions in the U.S. And personal vehicles a.k.a.
your car or your friend's car is responsible for most of those emissions. In
some parts of the country, you can get by without a car. But that's not true for
many of us. So is it a good solution to replace our gas-burning cars with
electric vehicles? Well, yes. Even if you live in a part of the US where some
electricity comes from burning fossil fuels and that's where you charge up your
car, an average EV technology is still better for the climate than a gas-burning car. And
increasing amounts of that electricity will continue to come from renewable
sources. Even accounting for emissions from the process of making an EV technology and its
battery they're still cleaner, and a better choice for the climate Climate
change isn't the only reason to switch from gas-burning to electric vehicles. Harmful
air pollutants that can cause heart and lung diseases are also produced by gas-burning cars. These tailpipe emissions tend to affect communities of color the most. That's
because of discriminatory urban planning practices that routed highways through black and brown communities leaving people exposed to polluted air. Electric
cars, trucks, and SUVs don't give off any tailpipe emissions. Electric city
buses don't either and neither do the big yellow electric buses that could be
taking your kids to school every weekday. As we keep working to switch from gas
to renewable electricity that's a clear win for public health. So EVs will play
an important role in reducing global warming emissions and improving public
health. But do people actually want to drive them? Well in the summer of 2019
almost two-thirds of prospective car buyers surveyed in the US were interested
in owning an electric vehicle. That number will grow as drivers realize that
EVs today can drive farther on a single charge than ever before, across any
terrain, in any climate. Public charging stations are being added across the country,
so there's less worry about range. New electric truck and SUV models are
announced each year so there are more and more options. Plus, they're just fun
to drive. So how can you make the switch to an electric vehicle? As EV
technology has improved over the past decade and the market has grown, prices
have been dropping. EV technology is also less expensive to maintain and it's cheaper to
charge than buy gas. State and federal incentives can make electric vehicles
more affordable. Plus as more EVs are sold, the used EV market grows, opening
up even more possibilities for ownership. The electric vehicle market has come
a long way and automakers and engineers are working every day to make these
cars even cleaner, better performing, and lower cost for drivers everywhere. If
we're going to reduce emissions from transportation, electric vehicles are a crucial
part of the solution, and we need to make sure our leaders are steering us in
the right direction.
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