Why not everyone can use an EV

I have an electric vehicle and love it. But I know that not every household can use an EV. It’s not just about price.

We have two cars. If both were EVs, we’d struggle as you don’t want to be stopping every 90 minutes to recharge the car if on holiday with the pre-schoolers. So the EV is used for 90% of trips but we definitely need the petrol car for longer trips.

If you live in an apartment block, you probably can’t charge your EV.

If you live in a hilly area of Wellington, you may not have a garage and hence can’t charge an EV.

This is why taxing petrol cars an extra $3,000 or so, to subsidise EVs is wrong. It punishes people over a decision they may have no choice over.