Despite sales growth, Alberta remains behind in the purchase of electric vehicles compared to all of Canada. In 2024, high initial costs, limited infrastructure, the strong oil identity of the province or the climate seem to have slowed down the electric shift.
According to an Abacus Data survey, 28 % of Albertans say they are likely to buy an electric vehicle as next car, compared to 45 % nationally.
The absence of an incentive to buy an electric vehicle (VE) in Alberta, unlike other provinces, can explain this trend. On the contrary, Alberta imposes an annual tax of $ 200 on their owners, supposed to compensate for the fuel tax they do not pay. For many, the economic equation simply does not hold.
This additional cost is the most common barrier for the purchase of an electric car. This is what pushes drivers to wonder if electric vehicles are a good investment.
Recharge… But where?
Those who live outside the large centers must often deal with the absence of charging stations. In St. Paul, in Alberta, Nathan Taylor, owner of a Tesla Model Y, regularly adds 20 to 30 minutes to his trips to Edmonton to find a refill point.
You have to plan your life a little more with an electric vehicle, and it is a drawback. Knowing that there is always a petrol station avoids this stress. If we had more charging infrastructure, it would be easier
he explains.
Some electric vehicle owners believe that there are not enough charging stations near them.
Photo: Mark vejvoda
When cars become a political object
Beyond the cost or logistics, some Albertans hesitate for more ideological reasons. In a province where the oil industry occupies a central place, the VE are sometimes poorly perceived.
If you examine an electoral card, I think it corresponds fairly well to the figures appearing on your map of the purchase of electric vehicles
observe Blake Shaffer. For one reason or another, electric vehicles have become an ideological symbol.
William York, president of the Alberta electric vehicle association, draws up the same observation.
I think this is reflected in the Alberta’s desire to support the petroleum and gas industry. Electric vehicles are therefore considered, rightly or wrongly, as an enemy of this industry.
Between misconceptions and realities
And then there are received ideas. In Fort McMurray, Todd Hillier leads a Ford F 150 Lightning For a year and a half. He loves his vehicle, but he still hears all kinds of stories: you have to connect it for days, that the batteries fall out suddenly, or that the cars take fire on their own.
Many of the first conversations I have with people are pure disinformation
he said.
However, it puts certain drawbacks: Maybe it takes me a little more time to go to Edmonton, but I do it for a fraction of the price of fuel. Some people say to me: “I prefer to pay more to go faster”. Very well, it’s a choice. But that they are told of spontaneous explosion on the highway, no, it does not happen.
With information from Andrew Jeffrey
