Meta-analysis of consumers’ trade-offs between range and charging infrastructure for electric vehicles

Abstract

The failure of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) to provide sufficiently long ranges in a relatively short charging time (as compared with conventional vehicles) is one of the main technical barriers to consumers’ adoption of these vehicles. However, this technical barrier could be mitigated if consumers were willing to trade-off lower ranges with better charging infrastructure. This paper analyses trade-offs individuals are willing to make between range and en-route charging station availability when considering the purchase of BEVs. By means of a meta-regression analysis of 33 stated preference studies, we find that consumers are willing to accept compensations for lower ranges in form of more dense charging infrastructure in their BEV purchase decision, but only when BEV ranges are longer than 250–300 km. This result is very relevant to promote the transition to BEVs because it shows that, in some circumstances, a significant technical barrier can be overcome with infrastructure investments.