Plug-in electric vehicles are reducing oil consumption and global warming emissions while saving consumers millions of dollars at the pump.
According to a new report from the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), plug-in electric vehicles, including plug-in hybrids and all-electrics, are already saving 45 million gallons of gasoline in the US per year. UCS estimates that Americans save $100 million a year in avoided fuel costs.
Californians have saved the most – cutting $40 million in annual fuel costs and reducing emissions of carbon dioxide by 140 thousand tons per year.
Sales of electric vehicles continue to rise. More than 90,000 EVs were sold in the United States in 2013 — more than double 2012 EV sales. In California, sales of EVs also increased more than 100 percent in 2013 compared to the previous year, and the state was home to nearly half (46 percent) of all new plug-in vehicles in the U.S. The majority of those sales went to the Nissan Leaf, Tesla Model S, and the Chevrolet Volt. In 2013, plug-in electric vehicles were 2.5 percent of new vehicle sales in California.
Looking forward to 2014, new models of EVs will hit showrooms this year. BMW is already reporting significant interest in its upcoming battery electric i3 car and other EVs from Kia, Cadillac, and VW are either in showrooms or on the way.
As new models and types of electric vehicles become available, these benefits will only increase.
[source: UCS, AutoBlogGreen]
