Full Title: Overcoming Barriers to Deployment of Plug-in Electric Vehicles
Author(s): Committee on Overcoming Barriers to Electric-Vehicle Deployment; Board on Energy and Environmental Systems; Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences; Transportation Research Board; National Research Council
Publisher(s): National Academy of Sciences
Publication Date: January 1, 2015
Full Text: Download Resource
Description (excerpt):
In the past few years, interest in plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) has grown. Advances in battery and other technologies, new federal standards for carbon-dioxide emissions and fuel economy, state zero-emission-vehicle requirements, and the current administration’s goal of putting millions of alternative-fuel vehicles on the road have all highlighted PEVs as a transportation alternative. Consumers are also beginning to recognize the advantages of PEVs over conventional vehicles, such as lower operating costs, smoother operation, and better acceleration; the ability to fuel up at home; and zero tailpipe emissions when the vehicle operates solely on its battery. There are, however, barriers to PEV deployment, including the vehicle cost, the short all-electric driving range, the long battery charging time, uncertainties about battery life, the few choices of vehicle models, and the need for a charging infrastructure to support PEVs. What should industry do to improve the performance of PEVs and make them more attractive to consumers?