FUNDING for more electric vehicle chargers could see an uptick of country drivers getting behind the wheel of the cleaner, quieter and sustainable cars.
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Woodleys Motors owner Mark Woodley said although electric vehicle purchases only make up around 5 per cent of current sales in Tamworth, the state budget's allocation of $38 million towards installing more kerbside and apartment chargers could push more people towards the fuel free cars.
"We've definitely seen a rise in popularity of electric vehicles, a lot of people are curious about them but not as many people are buying them," he said.
"The new infrastructure that the government has announced is a great step but much much more is needed for electric vehicles to really take off."
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Mr Woodley said the hesitancy towards electric vehicles was more prevalent in the country due to long distance travel.
"If you have a five hour drive to Sydney, or a six hour drive to Brisbane, you need to know that wherever you pull up, or what ever hotel you're staying at, there's a charger there," he said.
The 2022-23 state budget announced on Tuesday included $10 million towards 500 kerbside charge points; $10 million to help apartment buildings with electric vehicle charging upgrades; and $18 million for fast charging grants to speed up the roll out of stations
NSW treasurer and minister for energy Matt Kean said this would help drivers make it from point A to B.
"You'll never be far from a charger on our major highways, in regional destinations, apartment buildings and on kerbsides in metropolitan areas with limited off-street parking," he said.
With the cost of fuel continuing to rise, drivers can expect to pay no more than $78 for a 'full tank' of charge - which lasts around 500 kilometres.
Mr Woodley said the difference in price from a petrol or diesel car to an electric vehicle was anywhere between $4,000 to $12,000, with a four to nine month wait due to a global microchip shortage which affects electric vehicles more than the average car.
"They will become more affordable but that's still a couple of years away," he said.
Until more chargers are installed in Tamworth Mr Woodley predicted the biggest area of growth for electric vehicles would be the plug-in hybrid models, which are powered by both petrol and electricity.
While electric vehicles zipping through metropolitan areas will most likely outweigh those on country roads, Mr Woodley said the funding towards more chargers could mirror the boom in popularity of diesel cars.
"When diesel became more popular every service station was digging up their concrete and putting more diesel pumps in," he said.
"I think the same thing will happen with electric vehicles."
But until we see an electric ute on the market, Mr Woodley said petrol and diesel vehicles will continue to hold the monopoly on the roads in Tamworth.
"Sixty per cent of our sales are commercial type vehicles like dual cab vehicles that can tow and go off road," he said.
"So the uptake is going to be a little slower here in the country."
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