Electric vehicles have no tailpipe emissions when running on electricity. This not only is an improvement for the environment but importantly removes toxic fumes from our communities, which are produced by our existing petrol/diesel vehicles and have significant negative impacts on our health.
When we look at the full lifecycle emissions of EVs, which accounts not only for the tailpipe emissions during their use, but also in the manufacturing of the vehicles, and the end-of-life recycling and disposal, on average EVs reduce emissions by around 40-50% compared to similar petrol/diesel models, and around 25% compared to hybrid vehicles. This can be increased further when EVs are primarily charged using renewable energy, however, even when charged using the existing grid, they still deliver a significant environmental benefit.
For more information, check out the International Council on Clean Transportation’s assessment of lifecycle emissions for electric vehicles here or try using the EVC’s lifecycle emissions calculator here.