There’s a revolution under way in the automotive world that will transform how we get around, and while electric cars are still relatively uncommon in South Africa, this will probably change over the coming years.
In South Africa, there are currently only about 300 electric cars on the road, according to DTI data. By comparison, last year just shy of a quarter of all new cars registered in Norway was an electric car. Not a hybrid, not a plug-in hybrid, but a straight-up electric car (EV). Earlier this year, Volvo announced that from 2019 all new models the company releases will be electrified. That means it will be impossible to buy a new-model Volvo from 2019 that isn’t either, a hybrid, a plug-in hybrid, or an EV.
Arguments about the relative harm internal combustion engines have on the environment are probably less relevant than more recent understanding of the amount of harm caused to human health by diesel engines, which have been legislated into popularity because of their lower carbon emissions.