Who saves money buying electric vehicles? Heterogeneity in total cost of ownership

By N. Parker, Hanna L. Breetz, D. Salon, Matthew Wigginton Conway, Jeffrey C. Williams, Maxx Patterson. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 2021

112 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Abstract Electric vehicles (EVs) are likely to be a critical technology for mitigating climate change and improving urban air quality. To deliver environmental benefits, however, EVs must be adopted on a large scale. Total Cost of Ownership studies have shown that for the average US consumer, EVs cost more than gasoline-fueled vehicles. We contribute to this literature with a focus on heterogeneity across space and driving habits. Specifically, we estimate 5-year ownership costs for four EVs and four gasoline-fueled vehicles by neighborhood across Los Angeles County. Due to variation in electricity rates, insurance rates, and vehicle miles traveled, the median cost varies across neighborhoods by a factor of between 1.2 and 1.35, depending on the vehicle. Median costs of ownership are usually higher for EVs than for comparable gasoline-fueled cars, but considering the full distribution of vehicle miles traveled suggests that buying an EV saves money for over 17% of households.

Subfields: Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Pollution, Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/c3820957e82db2a5089f3799594f59bc0cbc7b7d