Overview & Benefits
Vehicles that are fueled by electricity are referred to as electric drive vehicles. These vehicles use electricity from a battery, either as their primary power source or as a supplementary source to improve fuel efficiency. These batteries can be recharged by being plugged into the electric grid or by electric generated features in the car such as regenerative braking.
The Department of Energy categorizes electric drive vehicles into three categories based on how electricity is utilized and regenerated:
- All-Electric Vehicles (EVs)
- Hybrid-Electric Vehicles (HEVs)
- Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs)
For the most part, electric drive vehicles produce fewer emissions than traditional petroleum fueled vehicles. HEVs produce tailpipe emissions but in general have much higher fuel economy and lower emissions levels than conventional vehicles. PHEVs produce some emissions when running off their engines and none when they operate off their batteries. EVs produce no tailpipe emissions. When evaluating emissions from any type of electric drive vehicle, it is important to consider the source of electricity.
Electrification in Vermont
- 581 charging outlets
- 4,769 gasoline gallons equivalent used
- 27 tons of C02 emissions reduced
Source: Department of Energy, 2017
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