September 12, 2019

Booming Electric Car Sales

Listen Later

2 minutes

Electric cars are becoming more and more commonplace over time. There is no place in the world where this is

more evident than in Norway. This year,

about half the new cars sold in Norway have been electric. This compares to only 25% just last

year. In March alone, nearly 60% of

vehicle purchases in Norway were plug-in cars, outselling gas and diesel cars

for the first time ever.

Norway has encouraged the switch to electric transportation by making

battery-powered cars tax exempt as well as offering various other

incentives. This is all part of the

country’s plan to end the sale of fossil fuel cars entirely by 2025.

Although Norway leads the world in electric car sales on a per capita

basis, there are many other places seeing rapid growth. In Maryland, for example, so many electric

cars were sold in the past year that the state’s tax credit program, which has

a $3 million annual budget, ran out of money seven months before the end of the

fiscal year. Between 2017 and 2018, the

number of EVs registered in Maryland doubled to over 18,000.

New York has also seen robust growth in electric vehicles. There are now more than 40,000 plug-in cars

registered in New York State. About a

third of those are Tesla models, with the increasingly popular Tesla Model 3

rapidly becoming the dominant plug-in car in the state. In fact, this year the Tesla Model 3 has

accounted for about 60% of all plug-in car sales in the United States.

Not only are electric car sales going up, so are the options for car

buyers. Within the next year or two,

there will be numerous new electric car choices available from multiple

manufacturers appealing to the tastes of a growing range of car buyers.

**********

Web Links

EVs Make Up Half of New Car Sales in Norway So Far This Year

Photo, posted May 16, 2019, courtesy of Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

...more

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Earth Wise

By Randy Simon

4.7

1515 ratings

September 12, 2019

Booming Electric Car Sales

Listen Later

2 minutes

Electric cars are becoming more and more commonplace over time. There is no place in the world where this is

more evident than in Norway. This year,

about half the new cars sold in Norway have been electric. This compares to only 25% just last

year. In March alone, nearly 60% of

vehicle purchases in Norway were plug-in cars, outselling gas and diesel cars

for the first time ever.

Norway has encouraged the switch to electric transportation by making

battery-powered cars tax exempt as well as offering various other

incentives. This is all part of the

country’s plan to end the sale of fossil fuel cars entirely by 2025.

Although Norway leads the world in electric car sales on a per capita

basis, there are many other places seeing rapid growth. In Maryland, for example, so many electric

cars were sold in the past year that the state’s tax credit program, which has

a $3 million annual budget, ran out of money seven months before the end of the

fiscal year. Between 2017 and 2018, the

number of EVs registered in Maryland doubled to over 18,000.

New York has also seen robust growth in electric vehicles. There are now more than 40,000 plug-in cars

registered in New York State. About a

third of those are Tesla models, with the increasingly popular Tesla Model 3

rapidly becoming the dominant plug-in car in the state. In fact, this year the Tesla Model 3 has

accounted for about 60% of all plug-in car sales in the United States.

Not only are electric car sales going up, so are the options for car

buyers. Within the next year or two,

there will be numerous new electric car choices available from multiple

manufacturers appealing to the tastes of a growing range of car buyers.

**********

Web Links

EVs Make Up Half of New Car Sales in Norway So Far This Year

Photo, posted May 16, 2019, courtesy of Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

...more