Early adopters of EVs in Germany unveiled Results of a study among private users of EVs in Germany Stefan Trommer, Julia Jarass, Viktoriya Kolarova DLR Institute of Transport Research Berlin, Germany
DLR.de Chart 2 Public perception of electric vehicles Only a small selection of car models at high purchase costs Limited buyership Limited (electric) range Restricting personal mobility Charging facility necessary at home/company Limited user group EVs require trip planning and periodic re-charging Loss of simplicity May 2015: ~35,000 registered electric vehicles in Germany (BEV & PHEV)
DLR.de Chart 3 Who are the early adopters of EVs and how do they use the vehicles? Why is it important to ask this question? Validate measures Assess the environmental benefits of electric vehicles e.g.: replaced vehicles vs. additional vehicles proportion of electric driven kilometer of PHEVs charging period Develop/adjust measures to increase EV sales and expand potential buyership Comprehensive studies of (private) EV users with a large sample sizes available from US and Norway: results not transferrable Results for Germany are based on small sample sizes, stated preferences and field trials in research projects
DLR.de Chart 4 Getting a picture of the status of electric mobility in Germany Survey among owners of BEVs and PHEVs in 2014: 3,100 participants from a total 9,000 invited EV owners in Germany (private and commercial) Comprehensive information about: motives for purchasing an electric vehicle daily usage characteristics of household / company charging practices and preferences The presentation and the paper focusses on private users of EVs (7% of the survey respondents)
DLR.de Chart 5 Profiles of private EV users in Germany 89% male, ø age 51 years 2- and 4-person-households 51% University degree, 70% are full time employed, high income 53% households live in detached houses > 50% strong environmental friendly attitude Compared to owners of (new) conventional cars: EV users tend to be older, male and having a higher socioeconomic status.
DLR.de Chart Mix of motives for purchasing EVs All figures are percentages Interest in innovative vehicle technologies 58 21 9 323 Reducing the environmental impact 4 15 8 423 Low energy costs per km 48 21 11 4 3 4 Pleasure of driving an electric vehicle 45 20 12 3 5 Low maintenance costs 24 20 17 9 7 10 Eco-friendly image 27 15 14 18 7 7 Use of electricity from own photo-voltaic system 35 9 7 31 5 5 Free use of public recharging stations 10 8 10 33 15 11 Exemption from vehicle tax 10 10 29 18 13 Free use of charging stations at work 13 53 10 Free parking 4 9 4 13 9 very important not important n = 2,47 Neutral responses were not considered in the calculation
DLR.de Chart 7 Large share of EVs in small cities Rural communities (<10,000 inh.) 41% 12% 22% Large cities (>100,000 inh.) 25% Small cities (10,000 20,000 inh.) Medium cities (<20,000 100,000 inh.) Higher availability of charging infrastructure at home Longer trip distances by inhabitants of small cities and their surroundings.
DLR.de Chart 8 EVs are used just like ICE vehicles on a business day Battery electric vehicles (BEV) 11,500 km 48 km business day 13,00 km 39 km Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) Small / low speed vehicles (e.g. Renault Twizy) 7,500 km 38 km business day (new) ICE vehicles have an average annual mileage of ~15,000 km Range restrictions apply especially for weekend and holiday trips
DLR.de Chart 9 The majority of users charges exclusively at home All figures are percentages In the vicinity of the home (n=1,873) 0 33 5 2 At work or educational facilities (n=4) 30 24 17 28 In public street space in cities (n=778) 4 14 32 49 At shops (n=455) 3 14 29 55 In the vicinity of recreational facilities (n=359) 1 22 71 At service stations along motorways or highways (n=32) 13 20 7 (almost) every day 1 to 3 days a week 1 to 3 days a month less frequently than monthly 0% of the respondents like charging their vehicle at work 50% would use on-street charging regularly
DLR.de Chart 10 Fast charging is a highly appreciated option Recharging the EV within 30min to 80% would allow overcome present obstacles to driving longer distances without lengthy intermediate stops 7% of the BEV users and 47% of the PHEV users like to use fast charging 77% are willing to pay for this option the majority is willing to spend 500-1000 for the option All figures are percentages BEVs & PHEVs (n=1,183) 7 4 13 31 29 1 0 20 40 0 80 100 already user more than 2,000 1,001-2,000 501-1,000 less than 500 no surcharge
DLR.de Chart 11 Interest in inductive charging limited to users of PHEVs High frequency of charging convenient option 27% of the BEV users compared to 38% of PHEV users rate inductive charging as an important option Willingness to pay limited vast majority not willing to spend more than 1000 for the option PHEV users somewhat more All figures are percentages BEV (n=545) PHEV (n=117) 1 3 11 37 32 1 3 2 18 38 30 9 0 20 40 0 80 100 already user more than 2,000 1,001-2,000 501-1,000 less than 500 no surcharge
DLR.de Chart 12 Expectations on electric range vary but the vast majority wants more Restrictions in range decrease usability of EVs 70% like a higher range Expected choice: BEVs = 120/150/200/300 km & PHEVs = 50/80/100/120 km Percentage of responses 10 9 8 7 5 4 3 2 1 0 50 80 200 100 200 120 150 200 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 300 Desired electric range in kilometre BEV users (n=1,045) PHEV users (n=14) Required range is irrational but car ownership ever was irrational also oriented on real world range experiences!
DLR.de Chart 13 Willingness to pay for additional electric miles is high Users of BEVs have overall a higher willingness to pay (2,884 resp. 2,254 ) But: considering the requested range, the willingness to pay per additional electric kilometer is higher for owners for PHEVs (23 resp. 18 ) All figures are percentages BEV (n=1,17) PHEV (n=11) 7 9 3 11 27 44 2 1 1 8 35 37 0 20 40 0 80 100 more than 5,000 4,001-5,000 3,001-4,000 2,001-3,000 1,001-2,000 up to 1,000
DLR.de Chart 14 Requirements on the EV system from user s perspective Solutions are needed to minimize limitations of EVs or make them better: Sticker price has to come down current EVs contain a lot of extra equipment increasing the price perception as a luxury product Electric range should be offered in different configurations Promote workplace charging allows full electric mobility on working days Public accessible charging infrastructure for car sharing vehicles and as backup for private users Fast charging on motorways and in cities for power user groups What s next? Efficient and sustainable measures needed to promote EVs: Incentives, subsidies? short term, impact on 2 nd hand market soft measures (e.g. usage of bus lanes, free parking in the city) are interfering city goals to promote public transport, cycling and walking
DLR.de Chart 15 Thank you Stefan Trommer German Aerospace Center - Institute of Transport Research stefan.trommer@dlr.de www.dlr.de