In this module, we have looked at electric cars from the public policy perspective. Government intervention in any sphere is only justified if it seeks to defend the public interest and safeguard public values. Mobility is an essential service without which all economic activity in a country would come to a standstill. The current mobility system is not without its problems. Emissions from IC engine vehicles pose a threat to human health and also contribute to global warming. The current dependence on fossil fuels also poses a long-term threat to energy security of many countries. These reasons are strong enough for governments to look at alternative solutions for clean and sustainable mobility. Additionally, the electricity generation mix is undergoing a sea-change with the penetration of renewables. Electric vehicles are not only clean, but they can also be integrated very well with renewable sources of electricity by implementing the concept of demand flexibility.

While government intervention in the field of electric mobility seems justified, we must recognize that governments have a variety of policy instruments at their disposal. These include law and regulation, Monitoring and law enforcement, Financial instruments, Technology development and innovation, and behavioural measures. Through the examples of California and the European Union we realize that different governments may employ different policy measures to achieve similar goals. We have seen that supranational, national and state governments are struggling to reconcile climate policy, energy policy, industry policy and air quality goals, while satisfying increasing mobility needs. In this context, autonomous electric vehicles present a solution which could very well balance these conflicting goals. However, in general, governments are reluctant to select one specific technology to support, so as not to distort competition in the market and put a potentially better technology at a disadvantage. At some point however, governments do have to intervene in setting standards to accommodate a new technology such as standards for public charging infrastructure in the case of EVs. Besides the competition between different zero-emission vehicle technologies, governments have many other options to improve livability and air quality in cities: by improving public transport, and providing better infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists.

Looking at electric mobility from an infrastructure perspective also gave us some very useful insights. The transport and mobility system, like the electricity system, cannot be designed rather it will evolve over time, constantly adapting to changing social preferences, user needs, economic conditions and new technologies. In the current context with the emergence of electric vehicles, we are seeing strong interdependencies develop between the transport and electricity systems. However, the massive adoption of electric vehicles does not only affect the physical electricity system and the transport and mobility system. It also introduces a lot of digital technology and software dependencies into the physical infrastructure systems, involving new interactions between the transport and energy infrastructure systems. Besides the technical challenges implied, these changes deeply affect the social dimension of the infrastructure. The established systems include a large number of actors which are involved as owners, planners, operators etc. of the various physical components and subsystems of the infrastructure. Established actors, with vested interests, are likely to resist change which is not aligned with their own strategic agendas. Bringing a new technology, such as electric cars, into the system, also brings new actors, with new roles and interests, and will require established actors to adapt, if not make their roles obsolete. Government plays an interesting role in this process, both as an established actor in critical infrastructure systems and as an enabler or agent of change.

Finally, we looked at the social dimension of EV policy. Mobility is an essential service which means that all policies related to EVs must be constructed within the framework of public values enshrined in the laws of countries. While mobility in itself does not imply private ownership of cars, it does imply that the government arrange public transport services and provide supporting infrastructure. In a future world where autonomous electric vehicles might be the primary mode of transport in rural and even urban areas, it is essential that data privacy and cyber-security risks are addressed. Governments should be aware of negative social effects while designing incentive schemes, thus limiting these schemes in time and the amount of money transferred is essential. Eventually users will base their decision to buy an EV on not just material factors but also on other factors such as a cleaner conscience for not polluting the environment and peer pressure.