Plug-in electric vehicles just got a shot of energy from the US Department of Energy, which said today that it would spend $22 million to support research, development and demonstration of innovative plug-in electric vehicles and direct injection propane engine technologies.
The agency will also do the same for community-based projects to accelerate the adoption of light, medium, and heavy duty vehicles that operate on fuels such as biodiesel, electricity, E85, hydrogen, natural gas, and propane, it said in a release. It will also help research and develop the infrastructure to support the vehicles, like refilling stations.
It adds that all such arrangements would be a cost-sharing basis.
Right now, electric vehicle sales are a small part of the market, at 3 percent. That’s why the federal government is offering up to a $7,500 tax credit for electric car purchases. Critics on the right say that if the cars were that good, businesses would buy them outright. Subsidizing them only tilts the scales, they add.
For a full list of federal laws and incentives provided to alternatively-fueled vehicles, visit this link.
