Barriers and Driving Forces that Affect Potential Adopters of BECs in Sweden : How the Transition to Battery Electric Cars can be Accelerated

Abstract: The transport industry makes up a significant portion of the carbon dioxide emissions and theg reenhouse effect. Although the transition to electric cars is already happening, the transition is not happening fast enough to meet the EU targets. Because of this, our study has the aim to investigate how the transition to electric cars can be accelerated in Sweden. The study has the goal to identify driving forces and barriers to the adoption of electric cars. Our study starts with a literature review used to gather insight into the research area and construct the data collection, which is done using a survey and interviews. Based on the empirical data, identified aspects are presented. The data from the survey and interviews are combined to label each aspect as a driving force or barrier. Multiple driving forces for electric cars were identified. One of them was the driving experience. Another was the low operational cost, which the potential adopters expected to remain low in the future. It was also found that the potential adopters have good faith in the future development of the charging infrastructure. Lastly, the visibility of electric cars in information channels and media was found to be prominent. With these aspects already being considered relatively good for potential adopters in Sweden, the focus should instead be put on the barriers. However, multiple barriers of significance were found. Most of these stem from limited range, slow recharging, and insufficient infrastructure. It was found that the slow charging and low density of fast charging stations made electric cars impractical except for shorter distances. Also, these factors create range anxiety for the drivers. To solve these issues, the government should incentivize the expansion of the fast-charging network. The purchase cost and total cost of the electric car were also found to be barriers. This is mainly due to the cost of the battery, which is significant. One suggestion is to remove the VAT for electric cars, such economic incentives have proven efficient in other places globally and will also be efficient in Sweden.