A reluctance towards switching to electric cars can be observed in various countries despite the effortsof national programs to promote electric vehicles. This paper investigates, if electric cars are capableof meeting the requirements of daily mobility in Germany. The analysis is based on data from theMobility Panel Survey Germany from 1995 to 2010 and the travel survey of the Stuttgart area from2009/10, combining a long-term travel behavior analysis with a regional specific verification. Thefocus is on individuals, who exclusively drive a car and walk during a day, relying on the car as aprimary means of transport. For this group the determinants of the decision using an internalcombustion engine vehicle (ICEV) versus a battery electric car (BEV) are analyzed focusing ondriving range and energy costs. The analysis suggests that around 80% of all daily travel by car driverscould be done with currently available models of electric cars where only charging during the nightwould be sufficient in the majority of cases. This suggests that the driving range of BEVs cannotactually be the restricting factor. On the other hand, the current cost structure of BEVs with high costsof investment and low costs of energy is not favorable for a large share of drivers, since their lowannual mileage does not compensate the high investment costs through low operation costs. In theStuttgart region, drivers from the suburbs would benefit most from such savings due to lower energycosts while those living in the city would need other cost structures or incentives for switching toBEVs.
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