Name: Are electric vehicles the future of transport?
Uploaded: 2023-01-11T13:53:17.163Z
Duration: 446.2
Description: With many countries pledging to reach 100% zero-emissions from cars in the next few decades, the future looks electric. But despite falling costs and a growing support infrastructure, the manufacture and promotion of EVs still raises some environmental concerns. Streamly spoke to transport electrification specialist, Stacy Noblet, about the pros and cons of going electric.

Electric Vehicles FINAL .mp4

Electric Vehicles.vtt

English

{{00:00:17}}
Electric vehicles compared to internal
combustion engine vehicles have a

{{00:00:21}}
lot of benefits and the environmental
impacts or lack of environmental

{{00:00:25}}
impacts is truly one of them.

{{00:00:28}}
The tailpipe emissions from all
electric vehicles are absolutely zero

{{00:00:32}}
compared to gas and diesel vehicles.

{{00:00:34}}
You have local air pollution
issues, so that's a huge benefit.

{{00:00:38}}
And even when you consider taking
the electricity used to fuel the

{{00:00:42}}
vehicles or to charge the vehicles
and the emissions associated with that

{{00:00:46}}
electricity, the lifecycle emissions
of electric vehicles are significantly

{{00:00:51}}
less in just about every case.

{{00:00:53}}
So the local impacts as well
as the global climate change

{{00:00:57}}
impacts are certainly key
benefits of electric vehicles.

{{00:01:01}}
What about the infrastructure?

{{00:01:03}}
Is there enough infrastructure in place
currently for the shift that we're

{{00:01:06}}
looking for towards electric vehicles?

{{00:01:08}}
The answer to the question, is
there enough charging is: not yet,

{{00:01:12}}
in just about every situation.

{{00:01:15}}
Here in the United States, there
is significant progress that's been

{{00:01:18}}
made over the last couple years to
build out infrastructure locally

{{00:01:22}}
as well as to enable long distance
travel for electric vehicles.

{{00:01:26}}
That range anxiety, as we say, is
one of the key barriers to really

{{00:01:32}}
seeing an uptake in electric vehicles.

{{00:01:34}}
And you know, one of the key ways to
address that is to build infrastructure

{{00:01:38}}
for longer distance travel.

{{00:01:40}}
So as of right now, a lot of the
funding and focus has been both at

{{00:01:45}}
those corridor projects as well as
home charging, workplace charging,

{{00:01:50}}
fleet charging, and all of the other
areas that are required to build

{{00:01:54}}
out the full charging ecosystem.

{{00:01:56}}
You mentioned range anxiety as
one of the barriers, but I think

{{00:01:59}}
another barrier is probably cost.

{{00:02:01}}
Electric vehicles seem
to be quite expensive.

{{00:02:03}}
Over the lifetime of the vehicle of
a internal combustion engine versus a

{{00:02:08}}
electric car, how does that pan out?

{{00:02:11}}
Sure, when you look at the cost of the
electric vehicle, that upfront price

{{00:02:15}}
tag can take you aback a bit, even
when you factor in the incentives that

{{00:02:19}}
are available from government agencies
as well as automakers and others.

{{00:02:24}}
But a key consideration is what
are the costs over the lifetime

{{00:02:29}}
of the vehicle or even the
years that you expect to use it.

{{00:02:32}}
And when you factor in savings
from maintenance, electric vehicles

{{00:02:36}}
have no oil changes, for example,
that combined with the fuel cost.

{{00:02:41}}
Here in the US we've seen $5,
we're sitting in California,

{{00:02:44}}
where it's $6 a gallon.

{{00:02:46}}
And when you compare that with
pennies of electricity cost, cents per

{{00:02:52}}
kilowatt, it's a significant saving.

{{00:02:55}}
So over the lifetime of the
vehicle, you can even look at

{{00:02:59}}
it on an annual basis and you're
looking at, you know, hundreds to a

{{00:03:03}}
thousand dollars every year savings
between fuel and operations costs.

{{00:03:08}}
So the other thing to bear in mind,
I guess, is that we're trying to

{{00:03:11}}
encourage people to reuse things more.

{{00:03:14}}
We've already got over a
billion cars on the planet.

{{00:03:16}}
So which is the more
sustainable option?

{{00:03:18}}
Is it for me to go out
and buy an electric car?

{{00:03:20}}
Or is it for me to carry on driving the
car that I've got for as long as I can?

{{00:03:24}}
Comparing buying new, buying
pre-owned electric vehicles or

{{00:03:28}}
keeping what you have, whether
it's running on electricity or

{{00:03:31}}
not, is really a personal choice.

{{00:03:33}}
And it's also a choice that fleets
will need to make when they consider

{{00:03:37}}
whether it's cost effective or not.

{{00:03:39}}
It's important to think about how
you drive the vehicle, how it fits

{{00:03:42}}
into your lifestyle, because the
fact of the matter is electric

{{00:03:47}}
doesn't make sense for every
person, for every organisation.

{{00:03:50}}
So it really does require a
thoughtful analysis at, you know,

{{00:03:55}}
the household level and across
the business to determine when

{{00:03:59}}
it makes sense to go electric.

{{00:04:01}}
And I say when, because I do believe
that it will make sense in the future.

{{00:04:05}}
Whether that decision needs to
be made today, again depends

{{00:04:09}}
on the individual situation.

{{00:04:12}}
So electric vehicles do have
an environmental impact in the

{{00:04:14}}
lithium battery, which is hard
to recycle and expensive to mine.

{{00:04:18}}
And that has an impact
on the environment too.

{{00:04:20}}
Do you think that electric cars
really are an environmental solution?

{{00:04:24}}
I do.

{{00:04:24}}
And you know the minerals and materials
sourcing, the recycling afterlife,

{{00:04:31}}
we don't have that all worked out.

{{00:04:33}}
It's not a perfect solution.

{{00:04:36}}
But the progress that's being made
in research and development, the

{{00:04:40}}
partnerships that have formed between
automakers and the entities that do

{{00:04:44}}
that recycling have come leaps and
bounds in the last couple of years.

{{00:04:48}}
So, I'm certainly confident
that we'll get to a place where

{{00:04:51}}
those issues are worked out.

{{00:04:54}}
But again, we do have to compare it to
the internal combustion engine vehicle,

{{00:04:58}}
which also is not a perfect solution.

{{00:05:00}}
There are plenty of other alternative
fuels out there that fleets and

{{00:05:03}}
individuals can choose from as well.

{{00:05:05}}
So, it, you know, it does require a
step back to really think holistically

{{00:05:10}}
about that purchase choice.

{{00:05:12}}
There is no perfect solution,
but electric vehicles certainly

{{00:05:15}}
have a great deal of benefits.

{{00:05:18}}
What about ownership in general?

{{00:05:19}}
Because obviously you talked about the
lower emissions, but the car ownership

{{00:05:24}}
itself is still a kind of issue.

{{00:05:26}}
Should we be looking for political
and social solutions to go together

{{00:05:29}}
with the electric vehicle solution?

{{00:05:31}}
Important that you said to go together.

{{00:05:33}}
It's a really, an all
of the above time.

{{00:05:37}}
We have to decarbonise all
sectors and fast, and for

{{00:05:41}}
transportation, it's not going to
require a one- a focused solution.

{{00:05:47}}
It's going to require pulling all
the tools that we have, including

{{00:05:50}}
transportation, demand management
solutions, smart mobility,

{{00:05:55}}
rethinking how cities are designed.

{{00:05:58}}
Of course, changing the way
that we drive, we purchase

{{00:06:02}}
vehicles, vehicle ownership.

{{00:06:04}}
You know, we've seen trends over
the last years where it's generally

{{00:06:07}}
declining, especially in urban
areas, and that's a good, good thing.

{{00:06:12}}
People who aren't driving
today shouldn't necessarily

{{00:06:14}}
decide to drive just because
electric vehicles are available.

{{00:06:18}}
But if they are making an informed
decision, then certainly electric

{{00:06:23}}
vehicles are a great choice.

{{00:06:25}}
How do you feel about giving us a
prediction, 5 years, 10 years, 15

{{00:06:28}}
years, of a world where we will- there
won't be any emissions from vehicles?

{{00:06:33}}
5, 10, 15 seems aggressive, to say
that we've completely solved the

{{00:06:38}}
transportation emissions problem
because the fact is, people who are

{{00:06:42}}
buying a vehicle today, an internal
combustion engine vehicle today,

{{00:06:46}}
probably won't be ready to switch
that over for another 10 to 15 years.

{{00:06:49}}
So it does seem, you know, aggressive,
but the progress that I've seen across

{{00:06:54}}
this industry in the last 10 years
has been absolutely mind blowing in

{{00:06:59}}
some ways, how fast we've moved, how
many EVs we have on the road today,

{{00:07:04}}
how many charging stations are in the
ground, the research and development

{{00:07:08}}
that's gone toward that, the attention
in terms of incentives and policy.

{{00:07:13}}
So if we've accomplished that
much in 10 years, I'm very

{{00:07:16}}
optimistic that we'll be in a great
spot 5, 10, 15 years from now.

Electric vehicles compared to internal
combustion engine vehicles have a

lot of benefits and the environmental
impacts or lack of environmental

The tailpipe emissions from all
electric vehicles are absolutely zero

You have local air pollution
issues, so that's a huge benefit.

And even when you consider taking
the electricity used to fuel the

vehicles or to charge the vehicles
and the emissions associated with that

electricity, the lifecycle emissions
of electric vehicles are significantly

So the local impacts as well
as the global climate change

impacts are certainly key
benefits of electric vehicles.

Is there enough infrastructure in place
currently for the shift that we're

The answer to the question, is
there enough charging is: not yet,

Here in the United States, there
is significant progress that's been

made over the last couple years to
build out infrastructure locally

as well as to enable long distance
travel for electric vehicles.

That range anxiety, as we say, is
one of the key barriers to really

And you know, one of the key ways to
address that is to build infrastructure

So as of right now, a lot of the
funding and focus has been both at

those corridor projects as well as
home charging, workplace charging,

fleet charging, and all of the other
areas that are required to build

You mentioned range anxiety as
one of the barriers, but I think

Electric vehicles seem
to be quite expensive.

Over the lifetime of the vehicle of
a internal combustion engine versus a

Sure, when you look at the cost of the
electric vehicle, that upfront price

tag can take you aback a bit, even
when you factor in the incentives that

are available from government agencies
as well as automakers and others.

But a key consideration is what
are the costs over the lifetime

of the vehicle or even the
years that you expect to use it.

And when you factor in savings
from maintenance, electric vehicles

have no oil changes, for example,
that combined with the fuel cost.

Here in the US we've seen $5,
we're sitting in California,

And when you compare that with
pennies of electricity cost, cents per

So over the lifetime of the
vehicle, you can even look at

it on an annual basis and you're
looking at, you know, hundreds to a

thousand dollars every year savings
between fuel and operations costs.

So the other thing to bear in mind,
I guess, is that we're trying to

We've already got over a
billion cars on the planet.

Is it for me to go out
and buy an electric car?

Or is it for me to carry on driving the
car that I've got for as long as I can?

Comparing buying new, buying
pre-owned electric vehicles or

keeping what you have, whether
it's running on electricity or

And it's also a choice that fleets
will need to make when they consider

It's important to think about how
you drive the vehicle, how it fits

into your lifestyle, because the
fact of the matter is electric

doesn't make sense for every
person, for every organisation.

So it really does require a
thoughtful analysis at, you know,

the household level and across
the business to determine when

And I say when, because I do believe
that it will make sense in the future.

Whether that decision needs to
be made today, again depends

So electric vehicles do have
an environmental impact in the

lithium battery, which is hard
to recycle and expensive to mine.

And that has an impact
on the environment too.

Do you think that electric cars
really are an environmental solution?

And you know the minerals and materials
sourcing, the recycling afterlife,

But the progress that's being made
in research and development, the

partnerships that have formed between
automakers and the entities that do

that recycling have come leaps and
bounds in the last couple of years.

So, I'm certainly confident
that we'll get to a place where

But again, we do have to compare it to
the internal combustion engine vehicle,

There are plenty of other alternative
fuels out there that fleets and

So, it, you know, it does require a
step back to really think holistically

There is no perfect solution,
but electric vehicles certainly

Because obviously you talked about the
lower emissions, but the car ownership

Should we be looking for political
and social solutions to go together

We have to decarbonise all
sectors and fast, and for

transportation, it's not going to
require a one- a focused solution.

It's going to require pulling all
the tools that we have, including

transportation, demand management
solutions, smart mobility,

The Green Gauge

Trend

With many countries pledging to reach 100% zero-emissions from cars in the next few decades, the future looks electric. But despite falling costs and a growing support infrastructure, the manufacture and promotion of EVs still raises some environmental concerns. 
Streamly spoke to transport electrification specialist, Stacy Noblet, about the pros and cons of going electric.

Electric Vehicles

Decarbonising Transport

Emission Reduction

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Stacy Noblet

Discover insights from other experts

Vice President, Transportation Electrification

Find out how electric vehicles interact with the environment, in comparison to the emissions impacts of traditional petrol vehicles.

Electric vehicle overview

There are some factors vehicle owners might want to consider when weighing up a switch to EVs, but Noblet explains why, over the lifetime of an EV, these tend to balance out in favour of electric.


Potential barriers

Addressing some of the negative environmental impacts of EVs, discover why Noblet still thinks going electric is the future. They may not be the perfect solution, but in a world that desperately needs decarbonisation, they are certainly a big step in the right direction.