In the biggest collective demonstration of demand for electric vehicles to date 26 states, cities, regions and businesses today simultaneously announced 100% zero emission vehicle targets.

The initiatives, developed and run by The Climate Group and C40 Cities, range from taking business fleets and employee benefit cars electric by 2030, to cities procuring only electric buses from 2025.

Zero emission areas in cities are also set to become a global phenomenon as 12 more cities confirm their commitment, including the Asian megacities of Tokyo and Seoul.

Collectively the targets, these governments and businesses are signing up to, will vastly increase the number of zero emission vehicles on the road, bringing the numbers up towards the levels necessary by 2030 to deliver on the ambition of the Paris Agreement. 

Coming together under the mantle of the #ZEVchallenge, international NGOs The Climate Group and C40 Cities, inspired by the Global Climate Action Summit, have linked-up their initiatives for states, cities and businesses (Under2 Coalition ZEV commitment, Green & Healthy streets and EV100). The commitments also include actions on infrastructure, to support consumers and businesses to charge their vehicles.

Announcements made today:

• 12 states & regions committing to Under2 Coalition Zero Emissions Vehicle Challenge, run by The Climate Group - Australian Capital Territory, The Basque Country, Broward County (Florida), Catalonia and Navarra (Spain), Drenthe (Netherlands), Emilia Romagna and Lombardy (Italy), Quebec (Canada), Scotland (UK), Washington and California (USA).
• 12 cities committing to C40 Green & Healthy Streets (Fossil Fuel Free Streets) Declaration – Birmingham, Greater Manchester, Honolulu, Medellin, Oslo, Oxford, Rotterdam, Santa Monica, Seoul, Tokyo, Warsaw, West Hollywood.
• 2 businesses newly committing to EV100 program, run by The Climate Group – Clif Bar and Delta Electronics, bringing the total of EV100 businesses to 23.

Other related announcements

On Tuesday, US Climate Mayors announced the formation of an EV Purchasing Collaborative 19 Climate Mayors are founding, in partnership with the Electrification Coalition,  a one-stop, coordinated platform for cities’ buying EVs to drive down costs and maximize market impact. Friday at GCAS will also see a major international zero emission vehicle infrastructure announcement, under the mantle of the ZEV Challenge.

Implications for global auto market

The #ZEVchallenge is designed to not only inspire more businesses, states and cities to set ambitious targets but also to push automakers to speed up their plans to put zero emission vehicles on the road, and raise their ambition, in time to achieve the Paris Agreement.

Helen Clarkson, CEO of the Climate Group, said “Today’s announcement opens a new frontier for the global auto industry. Its biggest customers, public and business fleets, are demonstrating their demand for a huge increase in EVs over the next decade.

“But this is also a wake-up call for the car makers and the tiny number of governments seeking to stall progress. They have a clear choice - go with the momentum and commit to a zero-emission future or miss out on this huge market opportunity.”

In less than a year, over 60 states/regions, cities and multinational businesses have committed to a zero-emission future. They represent a total population of over 237 million and corporate revenue of over $480 billion.

The Climate Group and C40 Cities believe the linkage between these sectors will be critical for the future. Work place charging with state/city support for home charging will tackle ‘range anxiety’ for the vast majority of journeys. Highly visible public fleets going electric will make it seem like the norm for consumers.

Zero emission areas will encourage more businesses to go electric if they wish to continue to operate in city centers. Crucially for the automakers there is a prospect of major fleet buyers working more closely together to encourage more electric cars on the road and to drive down costs.