Atiyeh, associate director of transportation fuels and technology at the Colorado Energy Office, is one of the architects of the state's Vehicle Exchange Program, which hands out a rebate of up to $6,000 to anyone who buys a new EV while surrendering a combustion-engine car.
Vermont authorized a scrappage program in 2021; California did in 2014. In all three states, policymakers have mobilized around a simple calculation: If governments are going to dole out money to boost EV adoption, why not tie it to getting rid of gas guzzlers?
But the long tail of US auto ownership is also extending. Over the past 10 years, the average age of a car on the road rose 9% to 12.2 years. For every silent new Tesla getting tucked into a garage, there's a wheezing Ford Explorer rolling off the used car lot, or a geriatric Hummer finding a second home.
[
add
]
[
|
|
...
]