Hybrid and Electric Vehicle Purchases Are on the Decline

       As the economy rebounds, sales of hybrid and electric cars continue to decline. Sport utility vehicles, crossovers, and trucks are gaining popularity as buyers have more expendable income. Because gas prices are so much lower than in past years, consumers’ main motivation for buying hybrid and electric no longer applies.        

       According to an article by ClimateWire, the past six months were the best the American auto industry has seen in a decade. Sales of trucks, crossovers, and sports cars are as high as they’ve been since pre-recession 2007. Previous to this recent jump, consumers had been steadily purchasing more fuel-efficient cars each year. But, recent data has shown this trend reversing. Although the aforementioned data is conflicting and far from conclusive, the numbers are still worrying.  And this backwards trend is not only true in the U.S. Fiat-Chrysler plans on introducing new Jeep cross-over models to India and China, where SUV sales have soared since last year. 

        There is a clear correlation between the sales of trucks and economic activity. SUV and truck sales are up, and hybrid and electric car sales are down. It’s obvious that the big auto-industry companies, as well as consumers, are under the impression that this shift is good for the economy and themselves. But this is false. The positive effect that sales of expensive trucks, and the gas to go along with them, have on the economy is extremely short term. In the long run it’s only increasing our country’s dependency on fossil fuels, and taking a huge step back from progress made towards lower carbon emissions and sustainable energy. Quarterly sales mean nothing if they negatively affect our economy and environment long term.

Source: ClimateWire’s July 31, 2015 edition

By: Kaitlyn Maskalenko, Intern