Electric cars on the rise

Bregenz district has the most new electric cars

Vorarlberg has a considerable number of e-cars.(Bild: studio22 - marcel hagen)

Every fifth new car registered in the district of Bregenz in the first half of the year runs exclusively on electricity - this is shown by the latest VCÖ analysis. Only in the district of Eisenstadt were e-cars in greater demand. 

Exactly 1033 electric cars were newly registered in Vorarlberg in the first half of the year. The share of "electric runabouts" accounted for 16 percent of all new registrations. Although this is a decrease of 1.7 percent compared to the same period last year, if you look back over the past five years, you will see that the proportion of e-cars has tripled. These are impressive figures.

E-car leader
The people of Bregenz can be particularly proud. At 20.5 percent, the district of Bregenz is Vorarlberg's e-car leader, ahead of the districts of Feldkirch (16.8 percent), Dornbirn (14.6 percent) and Bludenz (10.4 percent). In an Austrian comparison, the district of Bregenz is in second place, with only the district of Eisenstadt (25.9 percent) putting more new electric cars on the roads.

According to data from the Federal Environment Agency, the total CO2 emissions of electric cars (including vehicle and battery production and energy supply) are 53 percent lower than those of combustion-powered cars. If only green electricity is used for refueling, the figure is as high as 70 percent. However, the VCÖ experts warn that the trend towards larger, heavier, overpowered models is also worsening both the environmental and energy balance of e-cars. They are therefore calling for specifications for manufacturers at EU level to ensure that more smaller and more economical models come onto the market in future.

Climate targets
The VCÖ finds it particularly annoying that company cars with diesel or petrol engines continue to receive tax breaks. This contradicts the climate targets and is no longer in keeping with the times. "If companies purchase more e-cars, more electric cars will also enter the used car market, which is relevant for private households," emphasizes VCÖ expert Michael Schwendinger.