Editor:
Last week we decided to take our 2019 Kia Soul EV to Edmonton – and I thought what a better time than now to make everyone aware the carbon tax does work. First off we received a $10,000 combined federal and provincial rebate on our EV (the provincial portion has been reduced slightly to $3,000), and the charging infrastructure improvements, mainly due to the federal and provincial carbon tax, enabled a trip in total EV mode.
The only issues we had on the return leg was a Level 3 EV quick charger failure in Canmore (high speed DC charger, which we used for quick recharge stops), but luckily enough, a Petro Canada EV initiative made a brand-new, unofficially open Level 3 EV station available there for very high speed. The other issue was the Calgary to Edmonton corridor (Highway 2) stretched my range limit to 164 km. Hopefully one of the many sponsors for EV charging will reduce the distance between charge points on Highway 2 in the near future.
Too bad Alberta elected to stop the carbon tax initiative that has been highly successful in Europe, with Denmark taking the lead of nine per cent EV vehicles on the road (first quarter of 2019). Denmark is also driving expansion of their high-speed charging infrastructure and a 2030 expectation to have one million EVs on the road. Denmark has had a carbon tax since 1992 and is an example of very effective application of that tax.
We are not done; we used the provincial subsidies (also funded by the carbon tax) to change our home heating last year to the very high-efficiency ductless heat pumps, and next year we are considering a solar panel project. So to all the politicians who wrongly believe the carbon tax adds cost, quit with the fossil fuelling rhetoric.
We are happy to be on the green road, and it is much quieter with our EV.
Bert and Bernice Hogendoorn, Sechelt
