The question shouldn't be "Do we?", but "Should we?".
So far electric cars are not a feasable choice more than 90% of us. That is why the sales have lagged.
The usage fee is fair. Why should the rest of us pay for the roads they want to drive on?
It's about time.
Actually, the fee makes perfect sense. Electric cars still damage roads, just like gas-powered cars. Since a lot of road maintenance is paid for with the gas tax, they need to come up with a different way to charge EV users. Ultimately, the whole country should move towards a vehicle-miles-traveled fee rather than a gas tax to fund roads. Of course, I think there should also be a carbon tax to further discourage gas consumption. Anyway, the fee is perfectly appropriate.
It's a chicken vs egg situation, initially. If the infrastructure is not there, people won't buy and drive EVs. Infrastructure is catching up, too - PSU and PGE just opened up Electric Avenue, which features a number of different types of charging stations on SW Montgomery.
EVs that are priced lower than the LEAF are coming soon, too. Tthe Mitsubishi i will be available in Oregon later this year and is a more value-oriented car, and Ford, Smart, and GM will have electric cars coming onto the market soon, so competition should drive prices down a bit.
Also, GM killed the user fee last session, so that rate is a non-starter. The Road User Fee Task Force begins meeting in October to try to determine a rate that's acceptable to manufacturers, drivers, and the state.
For more info, check out the Citizens' Utility Board of Oregon's blog:
Sales have not lagged because of lack of demand, they've lagged because of production delays.
Electric cars are perfectly feasible for any family with 2 cars, and viable for 90% of the rest - how often *do* you drive more than 75 miles in a day? The difference between $0.02/mile electricity and $0.15/mile ($3.75/gal in a 25mpg car) will pay for the occasional car rental.
For anyone in the market for a new mid-range car, the only reason not to get an EV is that you'd have to get on a waiting list to get one.
Mileage fees are reasonable, but have a lot of issues, and there won't be enough EVs on the road to make a difference in either road wear or in mileage income for several years, so the problem doesn't bear rushing into. A good solution should be worked out, not something half-cocked...
So far electric cars are not a feasable choice more than 90% of us. That is why the sales have lagged.
The usage fee is fair. Why should the rest of us pay for the roads they want to drive on?
It's about time.
EVs that are priced lower than the LEAF are coming soon, too. Tthe Mitsubishi i will be available in Oregon later this year and is a more value-oriented car, and Ford, Smart, and GM will have electric cars coming onto the market soon, so competition should drive prices down a bit.
Also, GM killed the user fee last session, so that rate is a non-starter. The Road User Fee Task Force begins meeting in October to try to determine a rate that's acceptable to manufacturers, drivers, and the state.
For more info, check out the Citizens' Utility Board of Oregon's blog:
http://oregoncub.org/news/posts/electric-vehicles-continue-to-emerge-in-oregon
All the infrastructure can't solve that.
Electric cars are perfectly feasible for any family with 2 cars, and viable for 90% of the rest - how often *do* you drive more than 75 miles in a day? The difference between $0.02/mile electricity and $0.15/mile ($3.75/gal in a 25mpg car) will pay for the occasional car rental.
For anyone in the market for a new mid-range car, the only reason not to get an EV is that you'd have to get on a waiting list to get one.