Electric Vehicle Sales Set Records in Norway
For the first time ever, electric vehicles have outsold their fossil fuel-burning counterparts in Norway. In March, 58.4 percent of new cars sold in the country were electrified. However, when you average it out for 2019, the figure becomes 48.4 percent. Experts predict that the number will hover around 50 percent for the rest of the year.
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The key to EV sales in Norway
Norway didn’t become the king of EV sales overnight. Since the early 1990s, the Norwegian Parliament has been pushing towards a zero-emission future. They set a national goal — that by 2025, all new cars sold should be electric or hydrogen powered. But setting a goal isn’t enough to tip the scales in favor of electric vehicles.
To lead the change, Norway implemented a slew of policies favoring electric car buyers. For instance, Norwegians don’t have to pay purchase or import taxes on EVs, leaving combustion engine vehicles
Further, EV drivers don’t have to pay an annual road tax, while also getting to enjoy heavily discounted prices for toll roads, municipal parking, and ferries.
Leading the Charge: The all-electric Audi e-tron
New cars, new infrastructure
With so many electric vehicles on the road, you can probably guess that Norway needs a lot of chargers. Fortunately, Norway boasts more than 10,000 publicly available charging points, where more than 1,500 cars can fast charge at once. While most Norwegians charge their cars at home, virtually everyone agrees that it’s important to have access to fast charging when needed.
Sources: Elbil.no, The Detroit News
Kimiko Kidd is a native Daytonian. She graduated from Wright State University with degrees in environmental science and sociology. She loves her trusty old Honda Civic, but dreams of owning a 1974 Ford Falcon XB with a custom paint job and a vintage Kawasaki Z1000. In her free time, Kimiko can be found watercolor-painting, baking muffins, collecting rocks, playing old-school Nintendo games, writing her novel, sewing stuffed animals, and cosplaying as her favorite Mad Max characters. See more articles by Kimiko.