Electric cars now allowed on some Quebec roads

Low-speed electric cars are now allowed on some Quebec roads, thanks to a provincial pilot project testing the silent, fuel-efficient vehicles.

The Quebec government pilot project makes room on some roads for electric cars as of Thursday, as long as the plug-in vehicles follow certain rules. 

Vehicles produced by two Canadian companies  – Nemo, based in Quebec, and Zenn, headquartered in Toronto – can now operate on Quebec roads with posted speed limits less than 50 km/h.

The vehicles also have to be outfitted with an orange triangle that denotes a slower vehicle.

The project is meant to gauge interest in the alternative vehicles and encourage their development and manufacturing. 

The electric car's time has arrived, and peoples' interest is piqued, especially in light of skyrocketing gas prices, said Ian Clifford, CEO of Zenn.

"You can almost track the hits to our website based on the increasing cost of gasoline," he said in an interview with Canadian Press at the company's Quebec factory in Saint-Jérôme, north of Montreal. "There's a real convergence now of conditions that make [an] electric drive the real sensible choice for the future."

"Electricity is our only sustainable fuel — if you think about it — on the planet, and we believe that over the next five, six years we're going to see a massive adoption of electric vehicles on a global scale."

Clifford said the cost of driving an electric car does vary, depending on one's driving habits, but on average would work out to about a cent per kilometre for a Zenn car. 

The Zenn, which stands for zero emissions no noise, meets provincial safety standards for low-speed vehicles.

It can log between 50 and 80 kilometres on a charge.

The vehicle recharges through a regular plug that fits a standard electrical outlet.

The Zenn will cost about $16,000.

Necessity mothered Zenn's invention

Clifford said he used to drive a "classic" electric car built in 1959, but came up empty-handed when he went looking for a newer model. 

That spurred him to start building electric cars.

Quebec's pilot project is a proactive, positive step in the right direction, Clifford said. 

British Columbia has already passed legislation that allows the low-speed vehicles to be driven on 40-km/h roadways.

The B.C. law includes legal measures that permit municipalities to create bylaws for low-speed cars to travel on higher-speed roads.

Several municipalities in B.C. have shown interest in wider road access for electric vehicles. 

Ontario is testing the technology through a five-year project that allows the vehicles in provincial parks. Some provincial employees are also trying out the vehicles.

Other provinces are also curious about the vehicles, with "Manitoba, Prince Edward Island and Alberta … looking very seriously" at the technology, Clifford said. "We hope to certainly see some movement from them in the coming months."

Rules for vehicle use on roads falls under provincial jurisdiction, but Transport Canada oversees safety standards. The federal agency has  recommended that low-speed vehicles be used in gated communities and enclosed areas.

"What the main concern is is that the [low-speed vehicle] must meet a minimum level of safety, the Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standards," said Maryse Durette, a  Transport Canada spokeswoman in Ottawa, in an interview with the Canadian Press.

"When putting one of those vehicles in traffic with other vehicles, the safety issues are what are the concerns of Transport Canada."

Durette said the vehicles have to carry an identification number to track ownership, a seatbelt assembly and must meet low-speed vehicle class standards, including a maximum speed of 40 km/h.

Regular cars have to meet more than 40 standards.