Anthony Albanese will promise a Labor government would deliver a discount to cut the cost of electric cars and install community batteries, in initiatives costing $400 million over several years.
Australia has a lot of work to do to overcome the challenges facing electric vehicles users, starting with the lack of a comprehensive national charging network.
Emissions from road transport in New Zealand have doubled since 1990, and the Climate Change Commission recommends sweeping changes to switch to electric transport options.
The benefits of road-user charging are now well established. And including electric vehicles doesn't have to be a deterrent to their uptake, as New Zealand and other nations have shown.
A ‘green’ symbol for electric vehicle charging stations.
Photo by Michael Marais for Unsplash
Electric vehicles would lower emissions, but if their lower running costs lead to increased car use that creates a whole lot of other costs for our cities.
A “creuseur,” or digger, descends into a tunnel at the mine in Kawama, Democratic Republic of Congo.
Michael Robinson Chavez/The Washington Post via Getty Images
New Zealand voters are divided on climate policy along party lines, with the majority on one side of the political spectrum calling for urgent action while at the other end most recommend caution.
More people are reaching for an electric car.
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Electric vehicles are still relatively expensive but a trial to help them power the national grid in times of need could see owners being paid. That could make them a lot more attractive.
Professeur associé d’analyse financière, d’audit et de risk management - Directrice de Programme pour le MSc in Fashion Design & Luxury Management- Responsable de la spécialisation MBA "Brand & Luxury Management", Grenoble École de Management (GEM)