Gas prices, taxes and misinformation: why more Alberta drivers aren't going electric

Canada's electric vehicle sales are largely focused in just a few provinces, but a recent survey indicates the sector faces a particularly uphill road in Alberta.

Just 28 per cent of Albertan respondents said they were certain, very likely or inclined to buy an EV as their next car, in a recent Abacus Data survey, tied with the Atlantic provinces for the lowest among Canadian provinces and falling below the national response of 45 per cent.

The survey also found declining interest nationally, as the percentage of respondents who would buy an EV as their next vehicle dropped 13 per cent since they asked the same question to Canadians in 2022. 

Within that Alberta response, just one per cent said they were certain an EV would be their next car.

Blake Shaffer, an associate professor of economics at the University of Calgary, was not surprised to see the disparity.

He pointed to Canada's federal incentive for zero-emission vehicles ending, and the threat of U.S. tariffs driving down gas prices earlier this year, and the fact that cold weather can reduce battery range as factors that would create less interest in EVs. 

But he also noted the similarly low interest from respondents in Abacus's poll who voted Conservative, which he said is indicative of another barrier to EV growth in Alberta: political ideology.

"You look at an electoral map, and I think it aligns quite closely with the numbers on your EV intention map," Shaffer said.

"For whatever reason, electric vehicles have been caught up as an ideological symbol."

Nevertheless, EVs have seen growth in Alberta in recent years. As of March 2024, there were 14,189 electric vehicles registered in Alberta, more than double the number recorded in 2022. 

That growth has occurred even though Alberta has never had an EV incentive program of its own, like some other provinces.

The lack of incentive, combined with a $200 annual provincial tax — which the province says is to account for wear and tear on roads, and make up for the fuel tax that electric vehicles owners don't pay — can lead to a stiff upfront cost compared to similar gas-powered models.

That extra cost is the most common barrier to buying an electric car, Shaffer said. It can lead drivers to question if EVs are a good investment.

Saskatchewan also places a tax on EV buyers, and its respondents showed a similar lack of enthusiasm to selecting an EV as their next vehicle in the Abacus survey.