Colorado plans to phase out gas-powered cars by 2050 by giving residents more financial incentives to buy electric vehicles and encouraging low-income alternatives like e-bikes.
A new Colorado Department of Energy report highlights how the state aims to achieve 940,000 electric vehicles on the road by 2030 and “nearly 100% zero-emission light-duty vehicles on the road by 2050.”
However, the Centennial State will not follow the example of California and New York, which have banned gas guzzlers outright by 2035, but will instead focus on electrifying various medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles while removing some barriers to EV ownership.
‘That [Colorado] The market has grown so much since our last plan. When we approved the 2020 plan, our EV market share was around 3%. It’s about 10% now,” Will Toor, the executive director of the Colorado Energy Office, told Earther.
Colorado plans to phase out gas-powered cars by 2050 by giving residents more financial incentives to buy electric vehicles and encouraging low-income alternatives like e-bikes. Above: A Chevrolet Bolt charges at an Electrify America location outside of the Colorado Mills Outlet Mall in downtown Lakewood, Colorado
The 2023 EV Plan draft report, which builds on the 2020 plan, also notes that the state will need a massive increase in charging stations. The 2023 plan sets an ambitious goal of 1,700 fast charging stations and 5,800 Level 2 charging stations in Colorado by 2025.
Currently, there are only 720 fast charging stations and about 3,700 slower EV charging stations, according to an online database.
In many places, a lack of infrastructure is an obstacle to the adaptation of electric vehicles.
In New York City, there are only 677 stations across the five boroughs. The city is set to add 10,000 roadside charging stations by 2030, but it may not be enough to power the thousands of electric cars that will be on the roads by 2030 — 68 percent of all new vehicles sold that year will be electric.
The plan also offers another alternative to gas-powered cars that is more affordable and aimed at lower-income residents: e-bikes.
Officials want to consider a $12 million statewide e-bike tax credit program (funds were allocated in a previous law) inspired in part by a successful local e-bike program.
In April, Denver launched an e-bike rebate program, offering all residents $400 to purchase an e-bike — and up to $1,200 for those with a lower income threshold, plus an additional $500 for anyone who buy a cargo e-bike.
As of October, more than 4,100 Denver residents have redeemed over $4 million in e-bike coupons, The Denverite reported.
The draft plan envisages having over 10,000 e-bikes on the roads by 2025.
Officials want to consider a $12 million statewide e-bike tax credit program (funds were allocated in a previous law) inspired in part by a successful local e-bike program
In addition, the draft report envisages several other programs to push Coloradans toward electrification.
These include a program to help income-earning residents retire and replace their older, higher-emitting vehicles, and a residential charging infrastructure program to help them install EV charging at home.
Under the current federal EV tax credits, which are up to $7,500, final assembly of the cars must be done in North America. The draft plan also proposes to “extend the tax credit for light ZEV until at least 2027”. to give manufacturers time to catch up with federal requirements.
Colorado residents have until December 31 to submit comments on the draft plan and can do so here.
After that, officials are expected to release a final version of the report in late January or early February.
The 2023 plan sets an ambitious goal of 1,700 fast charging stations and 5,800 Level 2 charging stations in Colorado by 2025. Above: A Kia Niro EV being charged at a charging station at the Colorado Mills Outlet Mall on Monday, December 21, 2020 in Lakewood , Colorado
HYBRID VEHICLES EXPLAINED
A hybrid vehicle has two sources of power – a gasoline engine and an electric motor – that combine to propel the cars forward.
By seamlessly switching between pure electric propulsion at low speeds and efficient petrol propulsion at higher speeds, these vehicles not only save fuel and money, but also reduce CO2 emissions.
Hybrids can charge themselves, meaning your battery is charged every moment you drive, using technologies like a regenerative braking system that recaptures energy that would normally be lost and uses it for later use in the battery saves.
Self-charging hybrids do not need to be plugged into an outlet.
A plug-in hybrid offers all the benefits of a hybrid, but also has a charging station, so you can extend your car’s range by plugging it in at home or at one of the country’s electric charging stations.