WASHINGTON, D.C. –(ENEWSPF)–September 11, 2015. From Los Angeles to Oklahoma City to Ontario to Hong Kong, more than 100,000 people are expected to attend the more than 180 events planned in over 175 US cities, 41 states and four countries, to celebrate plug-in electric vehicles (EVs) from September 12th through September 20th as a part of National Drive Electric Week.
National Drive Electric Week, organized nationally by Sierra Club, Plug In America and Electric Auto Association, is now in its fifth year and at least five times bigger than when it first began. This year more than 3,000 plug-in vehicles are registered to be a part of the diverse array of events where enthusiastic EV drivers can talk up their cars to the EV-curious. With a wide range of events across the country featuring plug-in electric cars of several different makes and models, National Drive Electric Week highlights the increasing availability, affordability, reliability and convenience of electric cars.
In Los Angeles, race car driver Leilani Munter will be speaking about her Tesla Model S that moves at racing speeds, the 200-mile range Chevy Bolt Concept Car and the 2016 Nissan Leaf will both make their West Coast debuts, and the 2016 Nissan Leaf will be available for test drives. In Torrance, California an event will be held to unveil new city charging stations in the city. In Plymouth, Massachusetts, the Plimoth Plantation will host an event to mark the successful implementation of an electric vehicle charging program that the museum and five other Plymouth-area locations installed earlier this year. And in several states, Governors and mayors will be issuing official proclamations in support of National Drive Electric Week, recognizing the need for wider use of plug-in electric vehicles.
“With more plug-in electric vehicles on the market and on the road than ever before, it’s clear American consumers want 21st-century solutions to climate disruption,” said Michael Brune, the Sierra Club’s executive director. “Americans aren’t just looking toward a clean energy future, but leading the way.”
“What strikes me the most about National Drive Electric Week is the incredible diversity of our participants and our event organizers’ passion,” said Plug In America’s executive director Joel Levin. “Plug-ins are not a partisan issue any more. People just love these vehicles and the volunteers putting on these events are keen to educate people about EVs and share their excitement.”
Each year, American passenger cars and trucks, through vehicle tailpipe, oil extraction and transport emissions, spew upwards of three trillion tons of carbon pollution into the air by burning about 121 billion gallons of gasoline. A switch to fully electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, which require little or no gasoline and emit little or no tailpipe pollution, present a critical solution to slash pollution, create American jobs, reduce oil dependence, and forever change the impact of vehicles on our planet.
Thanks to federal, state and industry rebates and tax credits, decreasing prices in EV technology, and the much cheaper price of electricity vs. gasoline, the cost of owning and operating an electric vehicle is now notably lower than that of most comparable gasoline-fuelled vehicles. In Los Angeles, $0.60 of electricity can take you as far as one $4 gallon of gas. And with fewer moving parts — no mufflers, catalytic converters, or even oil changes — EVs are not only cheaper to fuel than any gas car, but cheaper to maintain.
With abundant environmental and financial benefits and the growing convenience of electric cars, from longer ranges to expanding charging infrastructure, EV use is rapidly increasing. Plug-in electric vehicles are selling at a faster pace than the first generation of hybrid cars.
National Drive Electric Week was founded on the idea that nothing converts the drivers of gasoline-fuelled cars to EV owners faster than conversations with existing owners and ride-and-drives in clean, quiet and powerful plug-in vehicles. National Drive Electric Week events are linked to increased plug-in vehicle sales, which have jumped by as much as 23 percent the month after National Drive Electric Week.
To find a National Drive Electric Week Event near you visit https://driveelectricweek.org.
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About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 2.4 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.
About Plug In America
Plug In America, a San Francisco-based national nonprofit organization, works to accelerate the shift to plug-in vehicles powered by clean, affordable, domestic electricity to reduce our nation’s dependence on petroleum and improve the global environment. The organization conceived National Drive Electric Week and has advanced workplace charging by pioneering ride-and-drive events at such leading corporations as Google, Mattel and Paramount Pictures. It developed the world’s largest, most dedicated network of plug-in vehicle owners and drivers, many of whom have driven EVs for well over a decade. We drive electric. You can too. www.pluginamerica.org.
About the Electric Auto Association
The Electric Auto Association, formed in 1967, is a nonprofit educational organization with 75 chapters worldwide that promotes the advancement and widespread adoption of electric vehicles. www.electricauto.org.
Source: www.sierraclub.org
