2016-05-18
Greens Leader Richard Di Natale was in Strathfield today to launch the Australian Greens plan to encourage the rollout of electric vehicles, saying Australia needs to get behind clean, innovative transport options.
"Electric vehicles are rapidly coming down in price. With solar panels on our roof, charging our batteries for our home and car, free daily transport is at our fingertips."
The Australian Greens want to increase the adoption of electric vehicles and encourage the growing electric vehicle industry by promoting free registration for electric vehicles.
"The federal government should provide incentives for people taking up this clean and reliable source of transport, through paying the cost to the states of registering new electric vehicles for up to five years," said Senator Di Natale.
"We also want to establish a $151 million fund to provide grants for state government agencies, local governments and private car park operators that want to set up electric vehicle charging stations for people in the community.
"You would be able to literally plug in your car to the power station at your local train station, sporting oval, swimming pool, library or while you are doing the groceries," Senator Di Natale said.
The electric vehicle proposal also includes promoting the purchase of electric fleet vehicles by NGOs and government, allowing for these vehicles to subsequently flow into the second hand vehicle market when fleet operators turn these cars over in five years or so.
"Providers like Nissan have had the electric leaf vehicle on the market since 2010 and since then we have seen the market grow with more people wanting a cleaner, cheaper option for transport," Senator Di Natale said.
"We need to support Australian developers and manufacturers of battery technologies, electric vehicle servicing and engineering, to seize the opportunities of the electric vehicle future.
"The old dirty power sources like diesel and coal are on their way out and we need to support industries like electric vehicles to move toward a more innovative future," Senator Di Natale said.
"Electric cars and buses are a critical part of the transport mix for a clean transport future," said the Australian Greens transport spokesperson Senator Janet Rice.
"The Greens plan for electric vehicles will drive Australia's transition to the new economy, creating the high skilled jobs of the future," Senator Rice said.