Electric Cars: Will SA switch on?
This article really debates the pros and cons of electric vehicles, particularly in the South African environment. I believe it will take longer for EV's to get a proper toehold in the South African market but once they do, the switch to a majority of electric cars on the road will be relatively swift compared to many more developed countries. The reason I think this, is because of other technologies that arrived later in SA but rapidly crushed the technology they were replacing. Compact discs took a number of years to become popular but soon drove vinyl and cassette tapes into virtual extinction in local record stores, whereas these analogue formats have continued to be sold, albeit in smaller volumes, in many other markets. Digital cameras followed a similar take-up curve and just about virtually replaced film in a few short years
Part of the reason for this type of trend is that the market isn't big enough to support multiple formats. In America and Europe there is in each a potential market of several hundred million, in Asia, billions. In Southern Africa, it's tens of millions, most with a lot less disposable income than their counterparts in the above mentioned areas.
I'm fully confident that once all the pieces are in place, EV's will explode onto South African roads.
This article really debates the pros and cons of electric vehicles, particularly in the South African environment. I believe it will take longer for EV's to get a proper toehold in the South African market but once they do, the switch to a majority of electric cars on the road will be relatively swift compared to many more developed countries. The reason I think this, is because of other technologies that arrived later in SA but rapidly crushed the technology they were replacing. Compact discs took a number of years to become popular but soon drove vinyl and cassette tapes into virtual extinction in local record stores, whereas these analogue formats have continued to be sold, albeit in smaller volumes, in many other markets. Digital cameras followed a similar take-up curve and just about virtually replaced film in a few short years
Part of the reason for this type of trend is that the market isn't big enough to support multiple formats. In America and Europe there is in each a potential market of several hundred million, in Asia, billions. In Southern Africa, it's tens of millions, most with a lot less disposable income than their counterparts in the above mentioned areas.
I'm fully confident that once all the pieces are in place, EV's will explode onto South African roads.
No comments:
Post a Comment