According to recent data from Electric Mobility Canada (EMC), sales of electric vehicles (EV) have plummeted in Ontario over the past year, and with it is making it harder for Canada to reach its national target for EV adoption.
Before the current Progressive government was voted into power in mid-2018, the Liberal government in Ontario offered a generous $14,000 rebate for EV purchasers. That rebate was cut soon after Doug Ford’s government came into power, citing the main [short-sighted] reason for the cancellation as it was going to people who could already afford expensive cars.
Now recently released data from EMC shows that in the first half of 2019, EV sales in Ontario were down 55% compared to the same period in 2018. In the second quarter alone, EV sales were down from 7,110 in 2018 to just 2,933 in the same three month period in 2019.
With the cancellation of the rebate and the steep drop in EV purchases, Ontario is the only province in Canada not seeing an increase in the number of EV purchases. The front-runners are Quebec and British Columbia, with BC having the highest number of EV sales per capita in North America.
This data clearly shows that incentives for EV purchasers are a successful strategy for governments to increase EV adoption. Canada’s national target is to have 10% of sales be electric by 2025. With about 5 years to go, current sales are sitting at just 3.5%.
For those who’s thinking align with the Ford government in Ontario that they should not be subsidizing rich people buying EV’s, remember that fossil fuel subsidies in Canada reach nearly $100 billion annually. Not to mention the fact that there is no price we can place on the future of earth, and Tesla’s mission to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.
h/t [CBC]
