Around the U.S., eight states, including California, Massachusetts and New York, are teaming up with the goal of making it easier to own an electric car. Options such as adding more charging stations and improving building codes is where the states plan to start, reported The New York Times. Other incentives could include reduced tolls, preferential parking and high-occupancy lane access.
"There's much that a state can do, and perhaps even more that local governments can do," Mary Nichols, chairwoman of the California Air Resources Board, told The New York Times.
Electric car sales are still very low, even though, according to U.S. Department of Energy, they require less vehicle maintenance and auto tune up than traditional cars. In light of sagging electric and hybrid vehicle purchases, auto manufacturers have been scrambling to reach sales mandates. General Motors recently announced they were dropping the price of their Chevrolet Volt by $5,000, with no reduction to the car's features. The group of states participating in this initiative - California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and Vermont - said the goal was to reach 3.3 million sales of cars with no vehicular emissions by 2025.