Abstract:

Transportation is a major source of carbon emissions that could be reduced by electrification. Although alternatives to internal combustion engine vehicles are already on the market, without extensive political support, electric vehicle (EV) adoption remains low. In this paper, the authors analyse the effect of individual and spatial characteristics on battery electric vehicle (BEV) adoption in four Swiss cantons. Understanding the drivers of adoption of alternative technologies is key to develop effective measures to accelerate their diffusion. This paper presents individual consumer characteristics and home-location based spatial characteristics of current BEV and internal combustion engine vehicle holders, in a region free from strong EV policies. Using a generalized linear mixed-effects logistic model on this revealed preference data, the authors find that BEV adoption is predicted by technology affinity, high income, green party preferences, and living in one’s own house. Altogether, the study offers insights on the characteristics of early adopters of BEVs that can be valuable to policymakers, energy grid and charging infrastructure operators, as well as the automotive industry. The assessment of transferability of knowledge generated from other EVs to BEVs reveals that different types of EVs should be investigated separately, in line with suggestions from other studies.