Sawyer D’Argonne / sdargonne@summitdaily.com
State officials are hoping a new agreement will help to bring more electric vehicles to Colorado’s roads sooner rather than later.
The Colorado Department of Transportation — in a collaborative partnership with the Colorado Energy Office, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and Global Automakers — has reached an agreement for a new proposed zero-emission vehicle regulation.
In January, Gov. Jared Polis signed an executive order directing state departments to adopt a zero-emission vehicle mandate, requiring automobile manufacturers to sell a certain number of electric vehicles as a percentage of their overall sales — a system that includes tradable and bankable “ZEV credits” manufacturers must maintain to meet restrictions.
The newly proposed agreement, still awaiting approval from the Air Quality Control Commission, would accelerate the availability of zero-emission vehicle options for Colorado consumers by offering early action credits to automakers to incentivize early sales.
“Coloradans’ travel needs are as diverse as our landscape, and it is important that consumers have a broad range of highly energy-efficient options when selecting a vehicle,” CDOT executive director Shoshana Lew said in a news release. “The electric vehicle market is maturing rapidly as automakers invest in more electrified models, and this agreement will ensure that Coloradans have access to the range of clean car choices that are increasingly available to consumers in other states.”
If adopted, Colorado would be the first state in almost a decade to enter into a zero-emission vehicle program and the first to do so through negotiations with the auto industry.