EV Mandates Face Reality Check as Sales Slow and Infrastructure Lags
Key Insights
California and Canada face challenges meeting aggressive EV sales mandates due to lagging infrastructure and consumer reluctance.
Market data shows EVs take longer to sell than gas-powered cars, with affordability and charging access cited as key barriers.
Industry leaders call for policy recalibration, emphasizing the need for infrastructure investment over punitive mandates.
B.C. and federal governments consider easing targets amid concerns about feasibility and economic impact.
California and Canada are grappling with the realities of aggressive electric vehicle (EV) mandates as sales slow and infrastructure struggles to keep pace. Brian Maas, president of the California New Car Dealers Association, highlights the disconnect between policy goals and market readiness. "The problem is there are mandates that require 35% of vehicles sold in 2026 to be zero-emission, yet current market share is only 20%," Maas said. "Manufacturers and dealers are unlikely to meet these targets."
Similar challenges plague Canada, where the federal government mandates 100% zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) sales by 2035, with interim targets of 20% by 2026 and 60% by 2030. Market researchers report EVs now take 55 days to sell in Canada, up from 22 days in early 2023, citing high prices and limited desirable models despite subsidies. In the U.S., EVs and plug-in hybrids linger on dealer lots longer than gas-powered cars, even as the Biden administration pushes for two-thirds of new sales to be electric by 2032.
Industry leaders are urging policymakers to recalibrate. "Mandating ZEV sales without adequate support is a policy failure," said Brian Kingston of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association. Tim Reuss of the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association added, "The government’s lack of support undermines its own ambitious goals." In B.C., where ZEV sales growth has slowed, officials acknowledge the difficulty of reaching a 90% ZEV target by 2030, citing affordability, supply chain issues, and charging infrastructure gaps.
Barry Penner, chair of the Energy Futures Institute, criticized the "cart before the horse" approach, advocating for infrastructure investment over coercion. "We need smart policy, not economic harm," he said. Maas echoed this, noting California’s need for 1 million chargers by 2030—far beyond the current 178,000. Canada faces a similar gap, requiring 679,000 public ports to meet its mandate.
The call for policy realism grows louder as governments weigh the economic and practical hurdles of rapid EV adoption. "Let’s align policies with reality," Penner urged, "to ensure a successful transition."