Barriers to widespread adoption of electric vehicles: An analysis of consumer attitudes and perceptions
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify potential socio-technical barriers to consumer adoption of EVs and determine if sustainability issues influence consumer decision to purchase an EV, and provide valuable insights into preferences and perceptions of technology enthusiasts; individuals highly connected to technology development and better equipped to sort out the many differences between EVs and CVs.
About: This article is published in Energy Policy.The article was published on 2012-09-01. It has received 1207 citations till now.
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TL;DR: In this article, the increasing population living in cities is leading to higher resource utilization, which strains the cities'ability to focus on sustainability, and adoption of different technologies can transform c...
15 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors proposed a predictive methodology for determining battery electric vehicle consumption variations when modifying traffic regulation elements, which could represent a significant influence on the vehicle consumption and, consequently, on its indirect greenhouse gas emissions.
15 citations
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TL;DR: Rebate on the purchase price is found to be the most effective strategy to promote electric vehicles adoption and incorporates the perceived advantage of electric vehicles in the form of latent variables in the utility function.
Abstract: Relative advantage, or the degree to which a new technology is perceived to be better over the existing technology it supersedes, has a significant impact on individuals decision of adopting to the new technology. This paper investigates the impact of electric vehicles perceived advantage over the conventional internal combustion engine vehicles, from consumers perspective, on their decision to select electric vehicles. Data is obtained from a stated preference survey from 1176 residents in New South Wales, Australia. The collected data is used to estimate an integrated choice and latent variable model of electric vehicle choice, which incorporates the perceived advantage of electric vehicles in the form of latent variables in the utility function. The design of the electric vehicle, impact on the environment, and safety are three identified advantages from consumers point of view. The model is used to simulate the effectiveness of various policies to promote electric vehicles on different cohorts. Rebate on the purchase price is found to be the most effective strategy to promote electric vehicles adoption.
15 citations
TL;DR: This study estimates the relative user value of BEVs and ICEVs resulting after design modifications to achieve different driving ranges by considering the engineering trade-offs based on a vehicle simulation and predicts that in approximately 2050, high performance large BEVs could have higher relative value than high performanceLarge ICEVs because of technological improvements in batteries.
Abstract: Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are now clearly a promising candidate in addressing the environmental problems associated with conventional internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs). However, BEVs, unlike ICEVs, are still not widely accepted in the automobile market but continuing technological change could overcome this barrier. The aim of this study is to assess and forecast whether and when design changes and technological improvements related to major challenges in driving range and battery cost will make the user value of BEVs greater than the user value of ICEVs. Specifically, we estimate the relative user value of BEVs and ICEVs resulting after design modifications to achieve different driving ranges by considering the engineering trade-offs based on a vehicle simulation. Then, we analyze when the relative user value of BEVs is expected to exceed ICEVs as the energy density and cost of batteries improve because of ongoing technological change. Our analysis demonstrates that the relative value of BEVs is lower than that of ICEVs because BEVs have high battery cost and high cost of time spent recharging despite high torque, high fuel efficiency, and low fuel cost. Moreover, we found the relative value differences between BEVs and ICEVs are found to be less in high performance large cars than in low performance compact cars because BEVs can achieve high acceleration performance more easily than ICEVs. In addition, this study predicts that in approximately 2050, high performance large BEVs could have higher relative value than high performance large ICEVs because of technological improvements in batteries; however low performance compact BEVs are still very likely to have significantly lower user value than comparable ICEVs until well beyond 2050.
15 citations
Cites background from "Barriers to widespread adoption of ..."
...Many researchers have noted that the key barriers to BEV market penetration are high battery cost and limited driving range.(8-14) However, recent technological developments in BEVs provide encouraging signals in both areas....
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TL;DR: A linear programming-based binary/cyclic (0/1) optimization technique is developed for the EV charge scheduling process and achieves minimum power consumption cost of the EV smart parking lot; efficient utilization of available power; maximization of the number of EV to be charged; and minimum impact on the EV battery lifecycle.
Abstract: Deployment of efficient and cost-effective parking lots is a known bottleneck for the electric vehicles (EVs) sector. A comprehensive solution incorporating the requirements of all key stakeholders is required. Taking up the challenge, we propose a real-time EV smart parking lot model to attain the following objectives: (a) maximize the smart parking lot revenue by accommodating maximum number of EVs and (b) minimize the cost of power consumption by participating in a demand response (DR) program offered by the utility since it is a tool to answer and handle the electric power usage requirements for charging the EV in the smart parking lot. With a view to achieving these objectives, a linear programming-based binary/cyclic (0/1) optimization technique is developed for the EV charge scheduling process. It is difficult to solve the problems of binary optimization in real-time given that the complexity of the problem increases with the increase in number of EV. We deploy a simplified convex relaxation technique integrated with the linear programming solution to overcome this problem. The algorithm achieves: minimum power consumption cost of the EV smart parking lot; efficient utilization of available power; maximization of the number of the EV to be charged; and minimum impact on the EV battery lifecycle. DR participation provide benefits by offering time-based and incentive-based hourly intelligent charging schedules for the EV. A thorough comparison is drawn with existing variable charging rate-based techniques in order to demonstrate the comparative validity of our proposed technique. The simulation results show that even under no DR event, the proposed scheme results in 2.9% decrease in overall power consumption cost for a 500 EV scenario when compared to variable charging rate method. Moreover, in similar conditions, such as no DR event and for 500 EV arrived per day, there is a 2.8% increase in number of EV charged per day, 3.2% improvement in the average state-of-charge (SoC) of the EV, 12.47% reduction in the average time intervals required to achieve final SoC.
15 citations
Cites background from "Barriers to widespread adoption of ..."
...The conventional transportation system is producing nearly 14% of total worldwide greenhouse discharges, which is estimated to increase further 50% by 2030 [1]....
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References
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TL;DR: Ajzen, 1985, 1987, this article reviewed the theory of planned behavior and some unresolved issues and concluded that the theory is well supported by empirical evidence and that intention to perform behaviors of different kinds can be predicted with high accuracy from attitudes toward the behavior, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control; and these intentions, together with perceptions of behavioral control, account for considerable variance in actual behavior.
65,095 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report results of two questionnaire studies aimed at examining various motives for car use, and investigate individual differences in the relative importance of the three categories of motives were investigated.
Abstract: This paper reports results of two questionnaire studies aimed at examining various motives for car use. In the first study, a random selection of 185 respondents who possess a driving licence were interviewed. Respondents were recruited from the cities of Groningen and Rotterdam, The Netherlands. The sample of the second study comprised a random selection of 113 commuters who regularly travelled during rush hours in and around Rotterdam, a region in the west of the Netherlands. First, it was examined which categories of car use motives may be distinguished. As proposed by Dittmar’s (1992) [The social psychology of material possessions: to have is to be. Havester Wheatsheaf, Hemel Hempstead, UK; St. Martin’s Press, New York] model on the meaning of material possessions, results from both studies revealed that car use not only fulfils instrumental functions, but also important symbolic and affective functions. Second, it was studied to what extent these different motives are related to the level of car use. From the results of study 2, it appeared that commuter car use was most strongly related to symbolic and affective motives, and not to instrumental motives. Third, individual differences in the relative importance of the three categories of motives were investigated. In both studies, most group differences were found in the evaluation of the symbolic and affective motives (and not the instrumental ones). Especially frequent drivers, respondents with a positive car attitude, male and younger respondents valued these non-instrumental motives for car use. These results suggest that policy makers should not exclusively focus on instrumental motives for car use, but they should consider the many social and affective motives as well.
1,064 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the relative efficacy of state sales tax waivers, income tax credits and non-tax incentives for hybrid-electric vehicle adoption in the United States has been studied and shown that the type of tax incentive offered is as important as the value of the tax incentive.
Abstract: Federal, state and local governments use a variety of incentives to induce consumer adoption of hybrid-electric vehicles. We study the relative efficacy of state sales tax waivers, income tax credits and non-tax incentives and find that the type of tax incentive offered is as important as the value of the tax incentive. Conditional on value, we find that sales tax waivers are associated a seven-fold greater increase in hybrid sales than income tax credits. In addition, we estimate the extent to which consumer adoption of hybrid-electric vehicles (HEV) in the United States from 2000-2006 can be attributed to government incentives, changing gasoline prices, or consumer preferences for environmental quality or energy security. After controlling for model specific state and time trends, we find that rising gasoline prices are associated with higher hybrid sales, although the effect operates entirely through sales of the hybrid models with the highest fuel economy. In total, we find that tax incentives, rising gasoline prices and social preferences are associated with 6, 27 and 36 percent of high economy hybrid sales from 2000-2006.
595 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore both the promise and the possible pitfalls of the plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) concept, focusing first on its definition and then on its technical state-of-the-art.
551 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a full year of high-resolution driving data from 484 instrumented gasoline vehicles in the US is used to analyze daily driving patterns, and from those infer the range requirements of electric vehicles (EVs).
Abstract: One full year of high-resolution driving data from 484 instrumented gasoline vehicles in the US is used to analyze daily driving patterns, and from those infer the range requirements of electric vehicles (EVs). We conservatively assume that EV drivers would not change their current gasoline-fueled driving patterns and that they would charge only once daily, typically at home overnight. Next, the market is segmented into those drivers for whom a limited-range vehicle would meet every day’s range need, and those who could meet their daily range need only if they make adaptations on some days. Adaptations, for example, could mean they have to either recharge during the day, borrow a liquid-fueled vehicle, or save some errands for the subsequent day. From this analysis, with the stated assumptions, we infer the potential market share for limited-range vehicles. For example, we find that 9% of the vehicles in the sample never exceeded 100 miles in one day, and 21% never exceeded 150 miles in one day. These drivers presumably could substitute a limited-range vehicle, like electric vehicles now on the market, for their current gasoline vehicle without any adaptation in their driving at all. For drivers who are willing to make adaptations on 2 days a year, the same 100 mile range EV would meet the needs of 17% of drivers, and if they are willing to adapt every other month (six times a year), it would work for 32% of drivers. Thus, it appears that even modest electric vehicles with today’s limited battery range, if marketed correctly to segments with appropriate driving behavior, comprise a large enough market for substantial vehicle sales. An additional analysis examines driving versus parking by time of day. On the average weekday at 5 pm, only 15% of the vehicles in the sample are on the road; at no time during the year are fewer than 75% of vehicles parked. Also, because the return trip home is widely spread in time, even if all cars plug in and begin charging immediately when they arrive home and park, the increased demand on the electric system is less problematic than prior analyses have suggested.
541 citations