Most Americans are still not persuaded to buy electric cars despite the federal government’s multibillion-dollar push to promote the vehicles.
A majority 54% of American adults think electric cars are not practical, compared to 28% who say they are practical for most drivers, found the latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey.
Broken down by party affiliation, 66% of Republicans, 46% of Democrats and 51% of unaffiliated voters said electric cars are not practical.
The Department of Transportation intends to spend almost $5 billion over five years to help states create a network of electric vehicle charging stations.
Meanwhile, a whopping 69% of Americans think most cars will likely still run mostly on gasoline a decade from now, including 37% who say it’s “very likely” that gasoline-powered vehicles will still be the norm in 10 years, according to the survey.
Just 23% think that it is unlikely that most cars will still be powered by gasoline in 2032.
SEE ALSO: California asks residents to avoid charging EVs during a Labor Day weekend heat wave
The numbers, which are similar to what the same pollsters found in March, come at a time when California moved forward with plans to ban the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035. Several other Democrat-run states are expected to follow California’s lead.
The regulation on new gas-powered vehicles does not apply to used cars or prohibit using current gas-powered cars.
In Virginia, which by law adopts California fuel-efficiency standards, Gov. Glenn Youngkin has vowed to fight the rule agreed to by his Democratic predecessor.
The Rasmussen survey of 1,000 adults was conducted on Aug. 17-18. The margin of error is plus or minus 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.