As the largest consumer of electric vehicles in North America, British Columbia had around 80,000 electric vehicles in 2022. This number should keep increasing due to raging gas prices and inflation.

Seen as a way to save money long-term, “an electric vehicle can save 80 per cent in gas expenses over a year, and about $100 a month in maintenance costs compared with a gas-powered vehicle,” according to BC Hydro. With current rebates being offered, those considering buying or leasing an electric vehicle can save up to $4,000 at the provincial level and $5,000 at the federal level.

According to StatCan, 13.6 per cent of all newly registered vehicles in 2022 were electric. Including electric hybrids, the percentage of vehicles requiring electric charging is 23.5 per cent. Compared to previous years, BC saw an increase of 6757 electric vehicles from 2021 to 2022. As a national leader in electric vehicle consumption, the municipal and provincial governments are setting a poor example on electric vehicle charging infrastructure. By offering rebates and tax deductions, the government is incentivizing consumers to buy electric vehicles, without having provided the proper infrastructure to meet demand. How is this lack of insight affecting current and future electric vehicle owners in Vancouver?

Leslie Ng, a sustainability specialist for the City of Vancouver, offers insight on the barriers surrounding electric vehicle public charging. “Increasing EV infrastructure is costly and challenging. Getting electrical service to a location […] often requires upgrades to services to ensure there is sufficient capacity [which] requires coordination with BC Hydro. Increasing electric infrastructure is something that government, private sector, car manufacturers and utilities need to all work together on to support the adoption of electric vehicles.”

A report published by the City of Vancouver in 2016 set large goals for the future of electric vehicles, promising that by 2050, 100 per cent of all transportation in Vancouver will be renewable. By prioritizing electric transportation, the city is encouraging this sudden demand in electric vehicles, but the lack of infrastructure has made it hard for many consumers to justify a purchase. Although most electric vehicles come with a level one charger, these take 30 to 50 hours to charge an electric vehicle from empty according to BC Hydro, leaving many Vancouverites dependent on public level 2 and 3 charging stations, which are most commonly found in parking lots, gas stations and malls. In comparison, a level 2 charger fully charges an electric vehicle from empty in four to ten hours. Currently, there are only 430 level 2 chargers in Vancouver, as recorded by ChargeHub. Level 3 or DC fast chargers can charge to 90 per cent in 45 minutes, but are expensive to install and upkeep, resulting in vastly fewer Level 3 chargers, despite their efficiency.

A survey from Pollution Probe, a Canadian NGO focused on environmental activism, polled 1,600 electric vehicle owners from across Canada and found participants overwhelmingly agreed there was an inadequate amount of DC fast public charging stations, as well as charging stations in general. A majority of respondents also agreed that the purchase of a future electric vehicle would be affected by public charging availability.

Vancouver Electric Vehicles Association (VEVA) member Bruce Stout points out in an email that “[many] EV owners charge at home so [the province] doesn’t need more stations,” but the majority of those who charge at home live in single family housing. According to the Canadian 2021 census, only 14.7 per cent of housing in Vancouver is single family housing. Lack of public charging heavily affects those in urban areas, who live in apartments or multiplexes. These EV owners are most affected because approval from stratas and apartment communities is needed to install a charging unit. This leaves many relying on public charging, which has proven to be unreliable.

A longtime Vancouver resident and electric vehicle owner of three years, who requested anonymity for privacy reasons, expressed their dissatisfaction with public charging. “I wholeheartedly support the conversion to EV’s, however I don’t have a dedicated charger at home, and have found it very frustrating. My strata didn’t approve of me putting in a charger when I got my EV, so have had to rely on public charging.” Being called “garage orphans”, as they have no private space to install a charger, many of these EV owners fear running out of charge or being stranded.

Being from a family that owns an electric vehicle, I have experienced this deficit firsthand. I have witnessed one of the most popular level 3 chargers in the city, found outside City Hall, sat broken for almost a month multiple times within the last year, leaving one of the 53 DC fast chargers in Vancouver, including UBC, Burnaby and North Vancouver, unavailable. Although this number may seem large, 53 fast chargers serving a population of 80,000 electric vehicle owners, around 8,000 of which rely on public charging, is a dismal number.

An action plan from the City of Vancouver on improving the general Electric Vehicle “ecosystem” highlighted three main goals: Accessibility, Affordability and Economic Opportunity. Currently, the City of Vancouver is making changes to meet these goals, two of which: accessibility and economic opportunity, are desperately needed in order to support further infrastructure growth. As of May 2022, only 2 out of the 66 gas stations in Vancouver had electric vehicle stations, according to CTV News.

However, due to recent municipal law changes, a gas station or commercial parking lot over 60 spots in 2025, will pay $10,000 in licensing fees if they do not supply EV charging stations. Currently, those fees are around $243. The provincial government recently passed legislation reducing the rate of approval for electric vehicle charging from 75 per cent to 51 per cent, making it easier for EV stations to be installed in condominiums and stratas. By doing this, the city is expanding the amount of EV charging stations in different neighborhoods and in urban areas, which will alleviate current strain on existing public chargers. The city will also be installing nine new DC fast chargers in the coming year.

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