{"id":287160,"date":"2023-11-08T18:38:37","date_gmt":"2023-11-08T17:38:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=287160"},"modified":"2023-11-08T18:38:40","modified_gmt":"2023-11-08T17:38:40","slug":"new-study-finds-electric-vehicles-are-driven-less-than-gas-cars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=287160","title":{"rendered":"New study finds electric vehicles are driven less than gas cars"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A new study from researchers at the George Washington University suggests that emissions savings from electric vehicles (EV) might be overestimated. In one of the largest studies on EV mileage to date, researchers at GW and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory examined odometer data from 12.9 million used cars and 11.9 million used SUVs between 2016 and 2022. They found that battery electric vehicle (BEV) cars were driven almost 4,500 fewer miles annually than gas cars.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

One of the largest studies to date finds the current generation of EV owners drive far fewer miles than owners of gas vehicles, translating to lower emissions savings from EVs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peer-Reviewed Publication<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WASHINGTON<\/strong> (November 6, 2023) – Mass adoption of electric vehicles (EV) is a key part of plans to decarbonize the United States\u2019 energy system. As EV ownership in the U.S. increases, understanding how much EV owners are driving their cars informs everything from climate and energy models to U.S. policy and energy planning. Thus far, the assumption among modelers and regulatory bodies like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been that EV owners drive their cars about the same number of miles as owners of gas vehicles. New research published in Joule<\/em>, however, challenges that assumption and suggests we may be overestimating emissions savings from EVs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In one of the largest studies on EV mileage to date, researchers at the George Washington University and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory examined odometer data from 12.9 million used cars and 11.9 million used SUVs between 2016 and 2022. They found that battery electric vehicle (BEV) cars were driven almost 4,500 fewer miles annually than gas cars. The study found a gap for both cars and SUVs: electric cars had traveled 7,165 miles while gas-powered cars had traveled 11,642 miles annually, and electric SUVs traveled 10,587 miles while their gas-powered counterparts traveled 12,945 miles annually. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPeople often assume that buying an EV is good for the environment, and it generally is, but the impacts scale with mileage,\u201d John Helveston<\/strong>, study co-author and Assistant Professor of Engineering Management and Systems Engineering at GW, says. \u201cOur study shows that the current generation of EV owners aren\u2019t using them as much as gas cars. For maximum impact, we need the highest-mileage drivers behind the wheel of EVs rather than low-mileage drivers.\u201d Because EVs generally have lower emissions over their lifetime, replacing a higher-mileage gasoline vehicle with an EV results in larger emissions savings, all else being equal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The researchers also compared miles traveled in Tesla versus non-Tesla BEVs, given Tesla\u2019s prominence in the EV market and other features like higher-range vehicles and a well-established fast-charging network. Nonetheless, they found that while Teslas were driven more than other EVs, Teslas were still driven less than conventional gas cars. The study did show that plug-in hybrid and hybrid vehicles were driven similarly to gas vehicles, however.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The study has implications for policymakers and regulators who are drafting and implementing emissions regulations, as the findings challenge current assumptions about how far people are driving their electric vehicles. For example, the latest analysis<\/u><\/a> from the EPA assumes EVs are already driven the same number of miles as conventional gas cars. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re going to craft a model that predicts how much emissions can be saved from EV adoption, that model heavily depends on how much you think EVs will be driven. If federal agencies are overestimating true mileage, that results in overestimating the emissions savings,\u201d Helveston<\/strong> adds. \u201cWe need to better understand not just who is buying EVs, but how they\u2019re driving them. What trips are EV owners substituting for a cleaner trip in an EV, and what trips are EV owners not<\/em> taking?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While not a focus of the study, Helveston suggested a couple of factors that may be affecting how far EV owners are driving their cars, including a lack of charging infrastructure that may limit EV owners\u2019 ability to reliably take longer-distance trips. Researchers also suggest multi-vehicle households may be another reason behind these findings; people who own EVs often own multiple vehicles, and they may be spreading out their annual miles over each of them, resulting in lower overall mileage on the EV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe magnitude of data used in this study posed several technical challenges, but I hope our efforts can inform policy around the impacts of EV adoption\u201d, said Lujin Zhao<\/strong>, a GW Ph.D. student who led the study.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The study\u2019s findings also have implications for the electricity grid as it means the anticipated electricity consumption from EV adoption may be lower than utilities are planning for. Additionally, the researchers say it\u2019s also important to consider that making a battery-powered EV typically results in higher upfront emissions compared to making a gasoline vehicle. Helveston and the research team says it will take longer to compensate for those higher up-front emissions if people aren\u2019t driving the EV enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The study, \u201cQuantifying Electric Vehicle Mileage in the United States<\/u><\/a>,\u201d was published in Joule<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

-GW-<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

JOURNAL<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Joule<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DOI<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

10.1016\/j.joule.2023.09.015 <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ARTICLE TITLE<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Quantifying Electric Vehicle Mileage in the United States<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

24-Oct-2023<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A new study from researchers at the George Washington University suggests that emissions savings from electric vehicles (EV) might be overestimated. In one of the largest studies on EV mileage to date, researchers at GW and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory examined odometer data from 12.9 million used cars and 11.9 million used SUVs between […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":287164,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"A new study from researchers at the George Washington University suggests that emissions savings from electric vehicles (EV) might be overestimated. In one of the largest studies on EV mileage to date, researchers at GW and the National Renewable Energy L","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691824420,691818076,691821977,691818154,691819783],"class_list":{"0":"post-287160","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-uncategorized","8":"tag-battery-electric-vehicle-bev-cars","9":"tag-co2","10":"tag-electric-vehicles-evs","11":"tag-net-zero","12":"tag-suvs","14":"fallback-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/OIG-38.jpeg?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1cHC","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":279507,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=279507","url_meta":{"origin":287160,"position":0},"title":"EV Sales In Decline To Private\u00a0Buyers","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"09\/19\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"This new study in The Times not only shows that EV sales to private buyers has actually dropped year-on-year. It also indicated that about 8% of private sales are BEV.","rel":"","context":"In \"BEV market\"","block_context":{"text":"BEV market","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=bev-market"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/0mfrack_realistic_photo_of_future_of_electric_cars_7d228c21-6279-4e7e-810a-b369c6f47159.jpeg?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/0mfrack_realistic_photo_of_future_of_electric_cars_7d228c21-6279-4e7e-810a-b369c6f47159.jpeg?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/0mfrack_realistic_photo_of_future_of_electric_cars_7d228c21-6279-4e7e-810a-b369c6f47159.jpeg?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/0mfrack_realistic_photo_of_future_of_electric_cars_7d228c21-6279-4e7e-810a-b369c6f47159.jpeg?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/0mfrack_realistic_photo_of_future_of_electric_cars_7d228c21-6279-4e7e-810a-b369c6f47159.jpeg?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":305320,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=305320","url_meta":{"origin":287160,"position":1},"title":"Drivers don\u2019t want electric cars, Aston Martin admits","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"02\/29\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Aston Martin has delayed the launch of its first electric car as the luxury marque\u2019s chairman admitted that drivers still want \u201cthe sports car smell, feel and noise\u201d of a petrol engine.","rel":"","context":"In \"Aston Martin\"","block_context":{"text":"Aston Martin","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=aston-martin"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/0Aston-Martin-Valhalla05-scaled-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/0Aston-Martin-Valhalla05-scaled-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/0Aston-Martin-Valhalla05-scaled-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/0Aston-Martin-Valhalla05-scaled-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/0Aston-Martin-Valhalla05-scaled-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":294240,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=294240","url_meta":{"origin":287160,"position":2},"title":"Electric Vehicles \u2013 the Nitro Glycerine of the Transportation World?","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"01\/08\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Electric vehicles (EVs) appear to have caused multiple fires at manufacturing factories in recent months, sparking a reminder about EV safety.","rel":"","context":"In \"electric vehicles (EVs)\"","block_context":{"text":"electric vehicles (EVs)","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=electric-vehicles-evs"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/020171018-teslamodelsfire.webp?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/020171018-teslamodelsfire.webp?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/020171018-teslamodelsfire.webp?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/020171018-teslamodelsfire.webp?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/020171018-teslamodelsfire.webp?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":266669,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=266669","url_meta":{"origin":287160,"position":3},"title":"UK Government Report: The Automobile Industry Does Not Know How to Repair EV Batteries","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"07\/10\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The research, published by Thatcham Research and funded by the Government\u2019s innovation agency, Innovate UK, highlights the technical and practical differences between battery electric vehicle (BEVs) and internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle insurance claims processes.","rel":"","context":"In \"battery electric vehicle (BEVs)\"","block_context":{"text":"battery electric vehicle (BEVs)","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=battery-electric-vehicle-bevs"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/0calgary-auto-insurance-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C723&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/0calgary-auto-insurance-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C723&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/0calgary-auto-insurance-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C723&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/0calgary-auto-insurance-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C723&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/0calgary-auto-insurance-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C723&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":341160,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=341160","url_meta":{"origin":287160,"position":4},"title":"Lex Autolease profits fall by \u00a3400m | Used EVs blamed for\u00a0reduction","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"08\/31\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Pre-tax profits for vehicle leasing company Lex Autolease have plummeted by more than \u00a3400 million, according to newly-filed accounts.","rel":"","context":"In \"battery electric vehicles (BEVs)\"","block_context":{"text":"battery electric vehicles (BEVs)","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=battery-electric-vehicles-bevs-2"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/0Go-Ultra-Low.webp?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/0Go-Ultra-Low.webp?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/0Go-Ultra-Low.webp?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/0Go-Ultra-Low.webp?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":289164,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=289164","url_meta":{"origin":287160,"position":5},"title":"More than 3,000 auto dealers sign letter opposing Biden’s electric vehicle mandate","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"11\/29\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Electric vehicles 'are stacking up on our lots,' car dealers write to Biden https:\/\/www.foxbusiness.com\/politics\/3000-auto-dealers-sign-letter-opposing-bidens-electric-vehicle-mandate By\u00a0Thomas Catenacci FOXBusiness A coalition of more than 3,000 auto dealers nationwide is sending an open letter to President Biden, calling on him to \"tap the brakes\" on his administration's\u00a0aggressive electric vehicle (EV) push. The coalition\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"auto dealers\"","block_context":{"text":"auto dealers","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=auto-dealers"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/0mfrack_cinematic_photo_of_man_and_future_of_electric_cars_af3b5ba0-c78f-4de8-a0a9-c7676d83f328.jpeg?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/0mfrack_cinematic_photo_of_man_and_future_of_electric_cars_af3b5ba0-c78f-4de8-a0a9-c7676d83f328.jpeg?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/0mfrack_cinematic_photo_of_man_and_future_of_electric_cars_af3b5ba0-c78f-4de8-a0a9-c7676d83f328.jpeg?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/0mfrack_cinematic_photo_of_man_and_future_of_electric_cars_af3b5ba0-c78f-4de8-a0a9-c7676d83f328.jpeg?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/0mfrack_cinematic_photo_of_man_and_future_of_electric_cars_af3b5ba0-c78f-4de8-a0a9-c7676d83f328.jpeg?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=287160"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287160\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":287166,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287160\/revisions\/287166"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/287164"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=287160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=287160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=287160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}