FARR funding
Electric cars get a boost in the Pontiac

Carl Hager

The future of transportation by electric vehicles is quickly becoming a reality in the Outaouais, including the Pontiac. CREDDO has received FARR funding of $182,500 to do a study on facilitating the use of electric cars in the region.

The Quebec government currently offers incentives up to $8,000 for the purchase of electric vehicles, with their Drive Electric program. They have set a goal of having 100,000 electric vehicles on Quebec roads by 2020, and by 2025, they want 10% of all cars sold in Quebec to be electric.

Benoit Delage, President of CREDDO says that the way forward is to install the necessary infrastructure to recharge vehicles in the region. Quebec benefits from the availability of cheap and bountiful Hydro energy in comparison with other jurisdictions, so installing charging centres at municipal offices is a necessary and easy first step, according to Delage.

Municipalities will also be encouraged to buy and use electric vehicles in the course of their regular business. It is anticipated that not only will harmful gas emissions be reduced but municipalities will experience savings in terms of energy costs for their vehicles.  As well, electric cars run cleaner and quieter than those powered by gas. 

What is hoped to follow is a key point to encourage the use of electric vehicles:  the concept of the “sharing economy”.  It has been proposed that, on weekends, residents will be able to use the municipal cars in order to do their personal business. Electric vehicles have a range of up to 400 km which will enable people to do their local shopping, visiting, etc., using these cars. Full details of the plan have yet to be established.

To further promote the electric car-sharing project, talks with regional MRC’s are ongoing and a large event is planned for April 27, 2018 where both municipalities and businesses can learn more about the energy transformation of society, and how they can become part of it.