Abstract:

Mass adoption of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) is a critical component of plans to decarbonize the US energy system. Understanding current PEV usage helps inform future planning. The authors analyzed the odometer readings from millions of used cars and SUVs listed between 2016 and 2022 reveals that battery electric vehicles (BEVs) have accumulated fewer annual miles than conventional gasoline vehicles (CVs): 7,165 compared with 11,642 for cars, and 10,184 compared with 12,979 for SUVs. Tesla BEVs have accumulated more annual miles than non-Teslas: 8,786 compared with 6,235 for cars and 8,970 compared with 8,553 for SUVs. BEVs with larger ranges were driven more, but increasing range has diminishing returns in terms of higher annual mileage. BEV sensitivity to operating costs was also less than other powertrains: for every 1 cent/mile cost increase, CV cars were associated with 140 fewer annual miles compared with only 59 for BEVs. These results suggest that assuming equal usage between BEVs and CVs is, at least in the short term, an optimistic assumption. Although future BEV usage might mirror that of CVs with more charging infrastructure, longer-range BEVs, or higher gas prices, current BEV usage patterns are well below those of CVs.