Nearly half of Americans in a new poll say it’s unlikely they would buy an electric vehicle, citing high prices even as the Biden administration works to up sales of the more environmentally conscious cars.
The poll, from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago, found 47 percent of respondents think it’s unlikely they’d go electric.
Nearly a quarter — 22 percent — say it’s somewhat likely that they’d pick electric next time they buy a car, while 19 percent said it’s “very” or “extremely” likely that they do so.
Just 8 percent said they or someone in their household currently owns or leases an electric vehicle. Another 8 percent say they or someone in their household has a plug-in hybrid vehicle.
Consumers are eligible for a tax credit of up to $7,500 for new EV purchases, but 6 in 10 respondents still cited the high cost of electric vehicles as a “major” reason they wouldn’t buy one. Roughly half of respondents said “too few charging stations” was a major reason.
The Biden administration is expected to put forward a proposal that would strengthen regulations on vehicle emissions that could potentially stimulate more EV sales.
Taken Jan. 31-Feb. 15, the poll surveyed 5,408 U.S. adults and had a margin of error of 1.7 percentage points.