More Canadians are buying EVs, but is there enough infrastructure to support the industry?
CTV
Electric vehicle sales in Canada has been increasing over the last several years but charging infrastructure and repair shops are adapting slower.
Electric vehicle registration is growing in Canada, but reports and experts note charging infrastructure and the auto repair industry are falling behind.
New data from Statistics Canada shows an uptick in electric vehicle (EV) registrations in 2022, up from 2.3 per cent in 2021 to 3 per cent or 789,000 vehicles. In the report, the statistical agency said other forms of sustainable vehicles also increased.
Zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) include vehicles that have the option to operate without tailpipe emissions, such as hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and battery electric vehicles (BEVs).
All types of ZEVs had "double-digit" growth in 2022, the report published on Nov. 2 reads.
By 2035, the federal government's goal is for all light-duty car and passenger truck sales to fall under the zero-emission category, a target that experts say may be out of reach due to the status of charging infrastructure, EV repair technology and battery longevity.
Jeff Dingwell, learning manager of automotive service technology at Holland College in P.E.I., said the government's target could be difficult to achieve.
"The shops, the people, the training and the tooling to fix (EVs); personally, I think it's a very lofty goal," Dingwell told CTVNews.ca in an interview on Wednesday.
