AIR DATE JUNE 1, 2023

Title: Electric Transportation

Emily takes a trip on an electric car to learn about the many benefits of EVs and how we can advocate for their implementation in local transportation.

Guests

Central Florida Clean Cities Coalition, Director – Doug Kettles
[Ceased operations, email: Clean Cities regional manager trevelyn.hall@netl.doe.gov for assistance]

Electrification Coalition, Campaign Organizer – Mary Linn
[Episode airing Saturday, 6/3/23]

Electric Vehicles Provide Numerous Benefits to Central Floridians

Most people are familiar with electric cars. I recently took a ride with Mary Linn, who serves as a campaign organizer for Electrification Coalition, to learn more about how this industry is growing.

“In all of our cities now, you see electric bikes,” Mary said. “Actually, electric bikes are outselling electric cars because they’re much easier and affordable.”

Electric bikes create a convenient solution to manage the last mile many people have when using public transportation.

Doug Kettles agrees. He’s the Director of Central Florida Clean Cities Coalition, and we also chatted about electric vehicles – though not while driving.

“We have about 5,500 fleet vehicles,” he told me. “Out of that, there are about 500 electric vehicles, but they account for 49% of the reduction in greenhouse gases in our area.”

Electric Transportation Leads to a Cleaner Environment

Doug told me about Tesla’s safety records when the vehicles were first introduced. “The Highway Traffic Safety Administration had to develop some new rules to really test those vehicles because they were exceeding all of the standards for safety that had already been established,” he said. “They’re enormously safe and efficient.”

Cost is the primary barrier to ownership for many families. Mary told me that some help was coming. “The federal government just gave the state of Florida $198 million,” she said. “It is only supposed to be used for charging stations, signs, and building the structures.”

Building more infrastructure for electric vehicles will reduce battery anxiety for many drivers in Florida, especially when traveling out of state.

Mary also mentioned the availability of rebates. “You can get a $7,500 rebate on your electric car if it’s made here in America,” she said. “There are so many different kinds on the road. You can have everything from a Tesla Plaid to a Rivian to a Hyundai to a Nissan to… It’s like every car. There’s high-end and low-end.”

Driving an Electric Vehicle Is Quite Safe

Doug admitted that his research showed up to a dozen EVs that caught fire after Hurricane Ian, which reflects 0.0005% of what is on the road today. “None of them introduced any petroleum products,” he added with a laugh.

By reducing combustion across thousands of vehicles, we can all become part of the solution that creates a cleaner environment.

Even when a vehicle is a hybrid instead of a conventional petroleum-based option, the risk of a fatal crash involving fire is 50% less for EVs.

Mary says the resistance to EVs is more about changing routines than the technologies we use. “We’ve started out with horse and buggy,” she told me. “We’ve gone electric now, and so it’s just a revolution of cars. It’s cleaner; it’s much more economical. You don’t have to ever filled up with gas. You don’t have timing belts. You don’t have all the bits and pieces.”

If you’re interested in learning more about how an electric vehicle could evolve how you drive, you can connect with the Electrification Coalition at https://electrificationcoalition.org. More information about Central Florida Clean Cities Coalition is also available at www.cflccc.org.