IV. ROADTRIPPING: EV Context
An Electronic Vehicle (EV) convoy leads the twenty-first-century sustainability quest.
This post is part one of an ongoing series, “ROADTRIPPING,” where I analyze the origin and developments of the century-old American Road Trip phenomenon against the backdrop of an ever-dimming American Dream.
Missed the last post? Go here.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) predicted last year 7 percent of four-wheeled passenger vehicles worldwide will be electronic by 2030. Global EV purchase data already outpaces these predictions. More ambitious estimates top at 30 percent by 2030.
On a global scale, America’s playing catchup. Norway’s private EV ownership rates in 2020 set the world record at 50 percent; Iceland comes in second at 25.5 percent; America ranks 15th, behind the UK, Portugal, China, and others with a whopping two percent, according to EV charging company Virta.
Though the United States' EV industry is relatively undeveloped, private companies like Tesla, Chevrolet, and BMW are releasing new EV models hand over first. Ford announced its plan to invest $11 billion in roughly 40 EV models by 2022, according to Reuters, and GM plans to roll out its own EVs by 2021. The nation’s proverbial sights are set on sustainability, and already there is policy to back it, like Governor Gavin Newsom's gas-powered vehicle phase-out effective 2035.
We finally have a chance to drive something that aligns with our beliefs about the natural world. This transition warrants consideration from We the People, We the Primary Drivers, the commuters, road-trippers, carpoolers: We whose drive-thru french fries fall and grow cold beneath our adjustable seats. We would do well to consider the American Experience from the perspective of its most intimate witness: the automobile.
The purpose of the coming sections is to evaluate how our 120-year-old automobile habit has shaped the modern American psyche. Today, we look toward a sustainable future from the comfort of our plug-in cars. Since we are poised on the brink of yet another massive industrial shift, let’s dig into the auto industry’s history for some context.
Proposition: The lifecycle of the American passenger vehicle serves as a caricature of its drivers. More soon.