A pair of psychologists and an economist at the University of Turku, in Finland, have found that because the average electric vehicle (EV) owner is wealthier than the average person, they still have a bigger than average carbon footprint.
Maybe EVs are not a comprehensive climate solution??
There’s correlation, but it’s not causal. The reason is that EVs are just more expensive (and are really only a practical option if you have your own garage as well), so wealthier people tend to buy them.
Actually, that is the case. New EVs tend to be pretty expensive and not very affordable for the average person. The second hand EV market is just getting started. Small, affordable EVs are beginning to emerge but it will be a few years until they make an impact. So right now the average EV buyer will definitely be more wealthy than the average ICE car buyer.
Are people wealthier because they own an EV, or are people who own an EV generally wealthier?
”The researchers found that people who purchase EVs tend to be wealthier than average”
In other words: OP is barking up the wrong tree as the EVs have little to no correlation with the non-EV-related carbon footprint of the EV owners.
Unless, of course, if OP is implying that EVs are too hard to acquire for the less wealthy consumers, though I somehow doubt that.
Yes. The owners are already wealthier when they buy an EV, and thus they already have the higher carbon footprint. This is not caused by the EV.
But an EV has a significantly higher carbon footprint than public transport, though.
There’s correlation, but it’s not causal. The reason is that EVs are just more expensive (and are really only a practical option if you have your own garage as well), so wealthier people tend to buy them.
Actually, that is the case. New EVs tend to be pretty expensive and not very affordable for the average person. The second hand EV market is just getting started. Small, affordable EVs are beginning to emerge but it will be a few years until they make an impact. So right now the average EV buyer will definitely be more wealthy than the average ICE car buyer.