Is it worth having an Electric Car in California?

California prides itself as an Eco state. A state that is taking great strides to reduce air pollution and be environmentally conscience. This can be seen in a number of different ways, California has some of the strongest automotive smog laws in the union and the strongest industrial smog laws. California is one of the leaders in giving rebates for more efficient energy use like florescent bulbs, efficient appliances and heat pumps, energy rebates for adding solar or wind power to your home or business. There are also “Green Laws” that penalize heavy users of power.

In the automotive industry California promotes Eco thinking by giving rebates for hybrid and electric cars. There are also laws in place to push manufacturers into producing more of these electric vehicles. California is also the first to start encouraging businesses to offer EV charging stations.

Not all of these laws complement each other though. As noted in the NorCalCars report on California Electric Cars some of these conservation laws actually penalize people with electric cars. The California Electric company’s sliding scale for charging for electricity will actually increase the amount you pay per Kwh if you have an electric car.

This makes “Electric Charging Stations” seem to be a necessary part of owning an electric car and many companies are stepping up to the plate. For years in the Bay area some of the electronic stores have offered EV charging stations as well as some of the larger stores like Costco. There are also other businesses that are starting to offer this service. A good example of an Eco friendly business is Pioneer RV park in Northern California, this RV park offers a EV charging station for clients that tow an electric car behind their motor home. Likely this will continue to be a trend with many ECO conscience businesses in the future.

California struggle to promote electric vehicles and other Green technologies will likely provide a example for many other states as the need to reduce our use of fossil fuels continues.