Ontario Green Party unveils plan to make electric vehicles more affordable

An electric car charging station is shown at Lansdowne Mall in Peterborough, Ontario on Sunday June 17, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Doug Ives

The Green Party of Ontario wants to make it more affordable for residents to drive new and used electric vehicles (EVs) if elected in June.

In a news release published Friday, the party said that with gas prices reaching $1.50/litre and above in recent days, many Ontarians are paying over $100 to fill up their tanks.

“Ontarians are getting gouged at the pump right now,” Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said. “And by making it easier to drive electric and getting big oil out of our wallets, we can make life more affordable.”

For comparison, the party said that, according to EV non-profit Plug’n Drive, charging an EV costs only around $2 to $5 at home, and approximately $12 to $14 at a level three public quick charge.

As such, the party said their plan to make EVs more affordable includes:

• Making the upfront cost of EVs less expensive than fossil fuel vehicles, with cash incentives of up to $10,000 for buying a fully electric car.
• Making low-cost financing for EVs readily available so most Ontarians can benefit from the lower total cost of ownership that EVs provide.
• Adopting a zero-emission vehicle mandate to ensure that a wide range of EVs are available for purchase in Ontario.
• Significantly expanding charging infrastructure in both public and private settings, including parking lots, transit stations, highway rest stops and homes.

“By investing in EVs, we will save people money, clean the air, improve health, and crush climate pollution,” Ontario Greens Deputy Leader and candidate for University-Rosedale Dianne Saxe said in a statement.

Saxe, who also served as the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario from 2015 to 2019, pointed the finger at Premier Doug Ford for slowing the province’s progress towards more EVs on the roads.

“One of Doug Ford’s first acts as premier was to cancel EV incentives and rip chargers out of the ground,” Saxe said.

Back in 2018, when Ford first took office, the premier scrapped Ontario's cap-and-trade system and the electric vehicle rebates funded by that program. The construction of new charging stations was also stopped and some existing sites were even removed by Metrolinx, the province’s transit agency.

The requirement for new homes to include the wiring for potential EV chargers was dropped as well and Ford rebuffed at the time available rebates of up to $14,000 for EVs as subsidizing purchases for wealthy buyers.

However, according to the Ontario government’s 2019 "Driving Prosperity" plan, the province is working to reposition its auto sector by building more EVs while also establishing local means of battery production.

According to the plan, the province aims to build at least 400,000 electric vehicles and hybrids by 2030.

With files from The Canadian Press