The Electric Vehicle Council (EVC), the industry’s main lobby group, says the proposed EV-only road tax makes no sense if Australia is serious about setting and reaching serious climate targets.
EVC CEO Julie Delvecchio says the soon-to-be-announced 2035 emissions reduction target will be missed “by a huge margin” if EV uptake slows because of an EV road tax.
“All roads to Australia’s 2035 climate target lead through dramatically increasing the use of EVs,” said Delvecchio on Monday.
“Prematurely removing incentives like the Electric Car Discount or introducing a road user charge before EV uptake is established will be kicking in the wrong direction to the 2035 climate target.
“Transport accounts for a fifth of our national emissions and is also one of our fastest-growing sources of pollution. Any genuine plan to meet the 2035 climate target has to include speeding up transport electrification.”
The warning follows latest Resolve Political Monitor – which is conducted by Resolve Strategic on behalf of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age – and which found 44 per cent of voters supported a 2035 target of cutting emissions by at least 65 per cent.
It also follows the productivity summit held by the federal Labor government last week, which produced little in the way of concrete proposals, apart from suggestions that a road tax could be introduced, but only applied to EVs. New Zealand recently applied a road tax, but applied it to all vehicles.
The EV lobby in Australia supports that strategy but says it is unfair to target EVs only. See: 10 reasons why Labor’s proposed EV-only Road User Tax is bad policy
Delvecchio insists it is critical to strengthen policies that drive EV adoption, rather than sending ever mixed signals to consumers.
“Every single petrol car or diesel truck that gets sold today instead of an electric car or truck will still be on our roads in 2035, pumping emissions into the air,” said Delvecchio.
“If we don’t slow this process we will not get anywhere near the 2035 goal that most Australians want.”
Current policies such as the Vehicle Efficiency Standard, the Electric Car Discount, and increased investment in charging infrastructure, have all served to drive record EV sales, helping to push EVs to over 10 per cent of new car sales nationally.
“These policies are delivering a multitude of benefits,” said Delvecchio. “Families are saving thousands on fuel costs, we’re reducing our dependence on imported oil, and we’re building the foundation for a cleaner, more resilient energy system through vehicle-to-grid technology.
“As the Climate Change Authority prepares its recommendations, we need a basic recognition that electric vehicles aren’t a nice-to-have – they’re vital to meeting the targets that Australians support.”
Joshua S. Hill is a Melbourne-based journalist who has been writing about climate change, clean technology, and electric vehicles for over 15 years. He has been reporting on electric vehicles and clean technologies for Renew Economy and The Driven since 2012. His preferred mode of transport is his feet.