I'm not so sure that EVs are more than good enough today to warrant a mandate. They are still much more expensive than a comparably equipped ICE. To me it seems a bit premature to start mandating EVs. Their sales are still dependent on government subsidies. Sales would fall if these subsidies were removed. Yet many governments are looking to do exactly that: replace subsidies with mandates. This to me seems like governments washing their hands of the whole EV transition challenge and pushing it onto automotive companies and consumers. If governments want this transition to happen they should help make EVs an appealing choice by assisting with battery research to bring down costs, not
cutting funding to such programs. Setting standards, not leaving us with a
Hodgepodge of charging plugs. Raising fuel taxes, not
shying away because it is politically tough sell. Yet many governments are taking the easy way out with mandates.
Also, we will see further improvements from ICE yet. Reminds me of when the railroads were facing a similar transition. Back in the day the French railroad was contemplating electrifying more of their lines and switching away from coal. Just as they were singing the praises of electrification and trying to arrange financing from the government, along came the coal locomotive
4-8-4 242 A1. It was more powerful than any electric locomotive to date and economical enough in coal consumption to nullify the economic advantages of electrification. Turned into a real embarrassment for those singing the praises of electrification. However the EV engineers didn't just take this challenge lying down. They altered their plans for a new locomotive they were designing so it was even more powerful than the 242 A1. Healthy competition pushing their rivals to better themselves.
This remarkable locomotive achieved extraordinary power outputs and efficiency in coal and water consumption, but no further examples were built since the SNCF focused on electric traction for its future motive power development. The 242A1 was put through trials on many test runs which showed that this locomotive was equal in power output to the existing SNCF electric locomotives at the time. Here, for the first time in Europe, was a steam locomotive with a 20 tonnes axle load which was not only at least as powerful as the most powerful existing high-speed electric locomotive, but which could repeatedly achieve its maximum power without any mechanical trouble. Nothing in Europe could match it.
While the 242A1 was being tested, electrical engineers were designing the locomotives for the 512-kilometre long line between Paris and Lyon, which was to be electrified. An electric locomotive that was to be slightly more powerful than the successful Paris to Orléans 2-D-2 type electric locomotive was being contemplated. When the test results of the 242A1 became known, however, the design was hurriedly changed to incorporate the maximum capacity possible with a 23 tonnes axle load, resulting in the 144 tonnes 9100 class with a power output of more than 1,000 horsepower (750 kilowatts) more than that of the original design. The performances of the Mistral and other heavy passenger express trains would therefore not have been so outstanding if the 242A1 had not existed and Andre Chapelon therefore indirectly influenced French electric locomotive design.
4-8-4
The oil barrel is half-full.