On April 7, 2022, Dory Larsen of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE) and their Electrify the South program presented “Roadmap to Electric Transportation: How Your League is Making a Difference” to the League of Women Voters (LWV) of Alachua County. LWVFL and SACE are partners in their Electrify the South program.

The goal of the presentation was to help LWV Alachua County members engage in practical advocacy to promote the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) by individuals and governments. Dory provided some EV basics and debunked some anti-EV propaganda. She suggested that we should ask governments for specific actions, including:  

• Advocating that the City of Gainesville and Alachua County both promote EV Readiness policies and codes and electrify their fleets and public buses;
• Supporting legislation at the state and national levels that would expand charging infrastructure; and
• Joining and otherwise supporting SACE and similar groups, including by responding to their action alerts.

Below is a summary of her presentation with a link to Dory's slides as well as other relevant resources.

The transportation sector is now the largest source of carbon dioxide pollution in the US.

EVs should be defined as those that can be plugged in, i.e., battery-only and plug-in hybrids. This definition excludes hybrids that get all of their power from fossil fuels. 

EVs provide many substantial benefits for individuals, governments, and society in general.  These benefits can be classified as economic, health, environmental, and national security, and include:  

• Lower lifetime ownership costs
• Lower operational costs, including lower fuel and maintenance costs
• Lower fuel costs – whether charging at home or on the road. Electricity is more efficient than fossil fuels allowing us to drive 1,000 miles for $30.
• Fewer parts to maintain and replace – essentially just wipers and tires. There is no need to replace oil and oil filters, brakes, exhaust systems, or spark plugs.  
• Reduce emissions of carbon and other unhealthy pollutants.
• Save time and increased convenience – we can plug-in in seconds when charging at home, and there are no more trips to the gas station.

Local Governments get the same benefits, plus saving taxpayer dollars, at fleet economies of scale.  Plus, 

• Improving public health,
  
• Helping achieve government plans to reduce climate change and improve sustainability, and
• Providing a source of community pride and projecting a more positive governmental and community image. 

We should ask governments to: 

• Establish fleet goals (electric police and other emergency vehicles, transit and school buses, and many types of trucks are currently available).  
• Adopt policies to increase EV infrastructure with EV Readiness. This helps create energy justice since lack of access to home charging is a well-known barrier to EV adoption.
  
• Promote EV-Ready policies and building codes (including EV Capable Parking Spaces), and
• Develop education and outreach programs to increase EV adoption (including EV websites, Ride and Drive events, and How to Charge Demos)

For information about available EVs, please see PlugStar.com.  

The LWVFL Clean Energy Committee is actively working on EV policy and education. Working with LWVFL and SACE, we can help our community develop a plan for outreach to local public officials with the Electrify the South Policy Toolkit and  flyer to leave behind.

Please familiarize yourself with the many benefits of electric transportation and drive an EV whenever practicable. Then work with SACE to prepare a customized approach to engage with your local public officials

Next Steps: Schedule a one-on-one call with dory [at] cleanenergy.org (Dory Larsen).

View Slides

A full recording of the webinar is available for members. Please info [at] lwv-alachua.org (email us) for a link to download the file.