Why more Alberta drivers aren't going electric

Canada's electric vehicle sales are largely focused in just a few provinces, but a recent survey indicates the sector faces a particularly uphill road in Alberta.

Just 28 per cent of Albertan respondents said they were certain, very likely or inclined to buy an EV as their next car, in a recent Abacus Data survey, tied with the Atlantic provinces for the lowest among Canadian provinces and falling below the national response of 45 per cent.

The survey also found declining interest nationally, as the percentage of respondents who would buy an EV as their next vehicle dropped 13 per cent since they asked the same question to Canadians in 2022. 

Within that Alberta response, just one per cent said they were certain an EV would be their next car.

Blake Shaffer, an associate professor of economics at the University of Calgary, was not surprised to see the disparity.

He pointed to Canada's federal incentive for zero-emission vehicles ending, and the threat of U.S. tariffs driving down gas prices earlier this year, and the fact that cold weather can reduce battery range as factors that would create less interest in EVs. 

But he also noted the similarly low interest from respondents in Abacus's poll who voted Conservative, which he said is indicative of another barrier to EV growth in Alberta: political ideology.

"You look at an electoral map, and I think it aligns quite closely with the numbers on your EV intention map," Shaffer said.

"For whatever reason, electric vehicles have been caught up as an ideological symbol."

Upfront costs vs. saving at the pump

Nevertheless, EVs have seen growth in Alberta in recent years. As of March 2024, there were 14,189 electric vehicles registered in Alberta, more than double the number recorded in 2022. 

That growth has occurred even though Alberta has never had an EV incentive program of its own, like some other provinces.

The lack of incentive, combined with a $200 annual provincial tax — which the province says is to account for wear and tear on roads, and make up for the fuel tax that electric vehicles owners don't pay — can lead to a stiff upfront cost compared to similar gas-powered models.

That extra cost is the most common barrier to buying an electric car, Shaffer said. It can lead drivers to question if EVs are a good investment.

Saskatchewan also places a tax on EV buyers, and its respondents showed a similar lack of enthusiasm to selecting an EV as their next vehicle in the Abacus survey.

More simply, Shaffer said slower EV uptake can also be connected to an overall hesitancy to embrace new technology, which he's optimistic can change.

"The more people see people like themselves, maybe their neighbours, with a new technology, they start to realize it works, it's not so uncomfortable or scary,'" Shaffer said.

William York, president of the Electric Vehicle Association of Alberta, said he sees other reasons why some drivers in Alberta don't want to go electric, including a sense of loyalty to the oil and gas industry, especially among those who remember the downturn the industry felt a decade ago.

"I think it plays out in terms of [Albertans] wanting to support the oil and gas industry. So EVs are considered, for right or wrong reasons, an enemy to that industry," York said.

But York is frustrated with viewing gas-powered and electric vehicles in opposition. Instead, he notes that Alberta is well positioned to be a player in the EV industry, with its large supplies of lithium and natural gas, which can be used for car batteries and electricity generation respectively.

"It just seems like we can't wrap our heads around the nuance, and we argue these topics with a surface-level understanding," York said.

Nathan Taylor has noticed a stigma against EVs in his hometown of St. Paul, Alta. He owns a Tesla Model Y, a car he was drawn to out of a fascination for the technology behind electric cars.

But the more tangible barrier to that technology, he said, is a lack of public charging infrastructure around much of the province with some towns having none at all.

For families who may not be able to afford to own both an electric and gas-powered car, and who need their vehicle for long commutes between cities, a larger network of public charging ports would give them the option to consider an EV, Taylor said. Travelling between his home and Edmonton typically requires adding 20 to 30 minutes to his commute to ensure he can drive by a charging station en route.

"It's teaching those little details and having to plan out your life out a little bit with an electric vehicle that is an added inconvenience," Taylor said. "Knowing that there's always a gas station around means you don't have to plan. If we had more charging infrastructure, it would be easier."

Misperceptions and spontaneous combustion memes

Todd Hillier, a Ford F-150 Lightning owner in Fort McMurray, echoed Taylor's point. He wants to see more charging stations around Alberta.

But the money he's saved at the pump from not needing oil changes outweighs that inconvenience, he said. Ever since buying his EV a year and a half ago, he hasn't looked back.

But that's still not a common sentiment among many people Hillier talks to, he said. The misinformation he often hears about EVs in conversation and shared in memes online, frustrates him, and he said it prevents people from making an informed choice.

And he's heard it all, including that EVs need to be plugged in for days at a time, that the battery often dies unexpectedly leaving a driver stranded on the side of a highway, or that the cars are prone to spontaneous combustion.

"A lot of the initial conversations I have with people are straight up misinformation," Hillier said.

"It might take a little bit longer to get to Edmonton from Fort McMurray, but I can do it at a fraction of the cost of someone that fills up with gas ... Some people say 'Oh, I'll pay more to get to Edmonton faster.' Sure, that's your prerogative and that's very much a fact. I'd rather have that discussion than someone saying it might spontaneously explode on the way to Edmonton. No, that's not happening."

Hillier still sees more EVs in his city than he ever has before, and has found a network of other drivers around Alberta to talk to that's grown even in the past year.

That reflects an openness toward EVs that Clean Energy Canada director of communications Trevor Melanson sees in the survey's results.

The Abacus survey was commissioned by Clean Energy Canada, and Melanson pointed out that because only 37 per cent of Albertan respondents were certain to buy a gas or diesel car as their next vehicle, it indicates a solid majority are at least open to buying an EV.

It just needs to make financial sense to drivers, he said, and more incentives and information around EVs could lead to more uptake. The federal government is currently considering replacing its EV incentive program, which Melanson said would boost sales across the country.

"There's a cyclical relationship here between supporting EVs and interest in EVs. When you have governments that support getting an EV and they make it easier for you, you're more likely to be open to it," Melanson said.

The Abacus Data survey was conducted with 2,585 Canadians from June 2 to June 5, 2025. A random sample of panelists was invited to complete the survey from a set of partner panels. The margin of error for a comparable probability-based random sample of the same size is +/- 1.92%, 19 times out of 20. The data was weighted according to census data to ensure the sample matched Canada's population according to age, gender and region.