Majority Of SA Drivers Considering An Electric Vehicle

An RAA survey indicates most motorists in South Australia are considering acquiring an EV when next purchasing a car.

The RAA survey of 1,500 members found 62% would consider buying an electric car, a big jump on a previous survey just a couple of years ago when 42% said they would consider an electric vehicle.

Petrol Price Pressure Piques EV Interest

The uptick in electric vehicle interest in South Australia comes as no surprise given the cost of petrol. Fuel prices this morning around Adelaide are generally a whisker under $2.30 a litre. And that’s with the temporary 24.3 cents per litre fuel excise tax cut still in place, which ends in September.

But beyond fuel prices, another motivator is a desire to cut driving-related emissions, with 71 per cent of survey respondents stating this to be a factor.

What’s Standing In The Way?

While the spirit may be willing, the wallet could turn out to be weak – how intention will translate to a purchase decision in the short term at least remains to be seen.

Electric vehicles are still pretty pricey compared to their emissions-spewing ICE (internal combustion engine) counterparts. But as with the solar energy revolution, this should improve over time and there are the substantial fuel and maintenance savings to consider; particularly if an EV household has a solar power system. Price was among the top factors discouraging respondents from purchasing an EV (65%).

Another top factor was the perception of  a lack of accessibility to charging equipment (57%). But the number of public charging stations is rapidly growing in SA and home EV charging is becoming more common; facilitated by greater choice of dedicated EV charger devices available in Australia – and electricians up-skilling to install them.

Another hurdle not mentioned in the RAA survey is actually getting your hands on an EV even if you have the cash to buy one, with wait times really blowing out on some models up to a couple of years. Again, this is something that should resolve itself assuming Murphy¹ doesn’t keep interfering and governments get/keep their acts together on supporting electric car uptake.

EV Subsidies Popular

The survey also revealed 70% of respondents believe governments need to place a higher priority on electric vehicle policies given the current fuel cost situation. The most supported government actions:

• Subsidising the cost of purchasing an EV (67%)
• Subsidising home charging infrastructure installation (64%)
• Discounting EV registration and stamp duty charges (59%)
• Providing more public charging infrastructure (51%)

In terms of EV subsidies, currently in South Australia there’s a $3,000 incentive for the purchase of a new electric vehicle; with a price cap of $68,750 inclusive of GST. Free registration is also available. There was also meant to be smart EV charger support in SA under a $12.25 million initiative providing up to 7,500 subsidies of up to $2,000 each to households installing eligible systems – but the Malinauskas Government axed it.

Commenting on public infrastructure, RAA noted it is well advanced in its site scoping works for expanding the state’s public electric vehicle charging network.

“The rollout of South Australia’s 536 public charging points at 140 sites across the State is expected to commence later this year and finish by January 2024,” stated the organisation.

More from the RAA survey can be viewed here.

Original Source: https://www.solarquotes.com.au/blog/ev-interest-sa-mb2520/