If the Government Pays for Full Home-Charger Installation, Would Affordable-Housing and Middle-Income Residents Buy Electric Vehicles?

Anne Christine Lusk (), Xin Li and Qiming Liu
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Anne Christine Lusk: Harvard Chan School of Public Health, 655 Huntington Ave, Room 314, Boston, MA 02115, USA
Xin Li: College of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Guangxi University, Nanning 530004, China
Qiming Liu: School of Urban Design, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 5, 1-26

Abstract: With climate change and inequities, this study assessed the willingness of affordable-housing and middle-income residents to buy an electric vehicle (EV) if they had a charging station at their home, the likelihood of buying an EV in 2 years, ideal charger locations, and payment preferences for installation. The new Green Books revealed charger opportunities. Volunteers completed paper surveys in Brookline, MA, in an affordable housing complex ( n = 37) and a middle-income neighborhood ( n = 128) (Total n = 165). Brookline is unique because drivers cannot leave their cars curbside overnight, and local historic districts (LHDs) require aesthetic charger-installations. Descriptive statistics (yes + likely) revealed that affordable housing (70%) and middle-income (65%) respondents would lease or buy a secondhand EV if they had a charging station where they park their car at their home. Affordable housing (43%) and middle-income (38%) respondents were more neutral about buying an EV in the next 2 years. The preferred charger location was the side of the house (44%) or a post by the driveway (38%). Preferred cost-for-installation included government reimbursement (47%) and tax deduction (41%). Data analysis combined affordable housing and middle-income responses and showed no significant differences for gender, significant differences for individuals 76 years and older, and minor differences for income. To inform individuals in the pre-contemplation phase, Black-owned businesses in the new Green Books could seek government funding for off-road chargers. While EV technology will improve, land is limited, so chargers should not displace climate-responsive bicyclists in curbside protected bike lanes. Following this study, governments and academics could pilot full funding of home charger installations to involve affordable housing and middle-income residents in this climate change solution, study details of these adopters, and develop worldwide policies to lessen greenhouse gas emissions.

Keywords: climate change; pre-contemplation stage of behavior change; construction; green books; policy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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