Canadian Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr is issuing a tender for private firms to help develop a high-speed electric vehicle charging network across the country.
“This is not something that government can do alone, we have no intention of trying to do it alone,” Carr told CBC. “We think this investment in electrical vehicles is a prudent way to proceed, but prudent doesn’t mean that you take your time. So we also understand that there’s urgency.”
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With 18,451 EVs and 3,513 charging stations across Canada, according to advocacy group Plug ‘N Drive, Carr said now is the time to take advantage of public interest in the technology. The purpose of a high-speed network would be “to make it more affordable, to make sure people can go greater distances, so when they get in their car they can get to the lake or get where it is they want to be, and that there will be a place to charge the vehicle that’ll take half an hour or less.”
Plug ‘N Drive President Cara Clairman said range anxiety is a deterrent for many Canadians considering electric cars, even though they only drive long distances infrequently. “The stats will tell you that 80% of Canadians drive 50 kilometres or less a day,” she said. “Most of us tend to drive and come home and charge at night.”
