Student group asking government for incentives on electric cars

Noah Ellis, assistant director of Renewable Transport P.E.I., is asking government to introduce incentives for Islanders to buy electric cars.

RTPEI is a group composed of high school students at Colonel Gray going into their final year.

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"We wanted to give back and contribute to our community and our country and we thought this would be a good way to do so," Ellis told Compass.

Meeting with government

"We want to see the government bring in incentives for electric vehicles because it would make them more competitive with their gasoline counterparts," Ellis said.

We wanted to give back and contribute to our community … we thought this would be a good way to do so.— Noah Ellis

Ellis said the group has spoken with opposition MLAs and is meeting with cabinet ministers soon to discuss subsidies for Islanders to buy electric cars.

He referred to Norway as a prime example for the province to model potential incentives — a country that, as of last year, announced nearly 40 per cent of the nation's newly registered passenger vehicles as electric powered.

'Incentives that are fiscally responsible'

Ellis said they group isn't looking for anything less than a 20 per cent incentive on electric vehicles — 10 per cent higher than the provinces cancelled hybrid car tax rebate that existed prior to HST.

"Electric vehicle incentives do work we just have to work with economists and environmentalists to find the right balance of incentives that are fiscally responsible for the province but will also be effective," Ellis said.

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