Electric car ownership has increased fivefold in three years in the Waterloo area

WATERLOO REGION – The number of electric vehicles in the Waterloo Region has increased fivefold in the past three years.

The number of electric vehicles in the region rose from 559 in 2017 to almost 2,800 today, exceeding the Sustainable Waterloo Region’s goal of 1,000 electric cars by 2020.

“We are well past what is fantastic,” said Tova Davidson, Executive Director Sustainable Waterloo Region.

Traffic accounts for almost half of all greenhouse gas emissions in the region – more than all emissions from homes and workplaces combined.

Choosing to drive electric is an easy way to make a huge difference in the amount of carbon you produce without fundamentally changing your lifestyle, Davidson said.

Energy from electricity produces only a tenth of the climate-warming carbon compared to energy from gasoline or natural gas, she said. “Even if you drive exactly the same amount and nothing else changes, opting for an electric drive means that you reduce these emissions by ten times.”

The number of electric vehicles in the region has grown steadily, from just 70 in 2013. She believes that number will continue to rise rapidly as prices fall and people better understand electric vehicles.

Some of the concerns about electric vehicles are misplaced, she said. People worry about “range anxiety” – the power will go out before they reach their destination – but that’s not really an issue that EV owners “think of in their daily lives,” Davidson said.

Most owners charge their vehicles overnight and are ready to drive. For longer journeys, there are more and more Level 3 chargers that can charge a car in 30-45 minutes – along the 400 highways.

People also fear they’ll have to sacrifice performance by driving electric, but a test drive will show that they actually get up and have a lot of fun, Davidson said.

Electric cars are more expensive than gas-powered ones, but this is expected to shrink over the next five years as production increases.

General Motors announced earlier this year that it is converting its CAMI Ingersoll facility into an electric vehicle manufacturing center, and automakers around the world are setting ambitious new targets for electric vehicle manufacturing.

More than 30 different vehicle models are available in Canada for less than $ 55,000. Combined with the new federal incentive of up to $ 5,000 for electric vehicles valued at up to $ 55,000, the affordability gap is bridged.

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Electric cars are cheaper to run and maintain because they have fewer moving parts, don’t need to be changed or refilled with other fluids, and the brakes are less subject to wear.

There are nearly 200 public charging ports in the region, as well as several companies that charge their employees. She wanted more stations and that municipalities would require chargers in apartment buildings and basic charging infrastructure in all parking lots and garages.