Electric cars require large government investment
At the beginning of the 20th century, when Ford’s T model petrol car became the ultimate vehicle of your average American (and average world citizen), petrol-fueled cars had been developing alongside electric concepts. Now we are starting to realize going electric in the first place, would have probably been the better alternative. But today, it is equally true that electric cars require large government investment.
With the oil crisis the world is going through right now, we are starting to realize the importance of petrol, but also the need to develop alternative fuels and energy sources. So there we have it, the electric car, neatly lined up, biding its time before it becomes a smashing market success.
But beyond the pros and cons of electric cars versus the polluting “classical” petrol ones, we must realize that implementing electric vehicles on a large scale requires a considerable investment from the governments that decide to go green.
Let’s take the example of rich and… northern Norway. Though the Norwegians have the rich North Sea with its plentiful supply of gas and oil, the government has been keenly involved in its effort to implement electric cars on a national level. To encourage people to buy electric vehicles, the Norwegian Government has offered tax exemptions, free parking, free toll-road access and other incentives.
The program worked all right, since in 2015, Norway has been responsible for one third of all electric car sales in Europe. One in five cars bought in the country this year has been electric.
Nevertheless, the tax exemptions applied to electric car drivers have taken their toll on the Norwegian finances, according to Reuters. The government anticipates a shortfall in tax of almost 270 million dollars.
So in the coming years, Norway might reconsider its electric car policies. In the meantime, until 2017 at least, it is anticipated that these perks will be preserved, so if you are living in this Scandinavian country, enjoy it!
