Moving to zero-emission vehicles through regulations and investments is a significant part of Canada's $9.1 billion Emissions Reduction Plan to meet Canada's Paris Agreement target for 2030 and get on track for net-zero emissions by 2050. PHOTO by Pexels.
The federal government has released Canada’s Action Plan for Clean On-Road Transportation, outlining the strategy for the switch to zero-emission vehicles and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
“We are working with industry to secure jobs and production mandates in Canada, in order to enable a successful transformation to electrification. Our actions will support strong, resilient and reliable Canadian automotive and battery sectors with more jobs for Canadians,” said François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry. Champagne, along with his provincial counterparts in Ontario and Quebec, has been instrumental in cementing monumental investment in EV infrastructure in Ontario and Quebec that over the course of a year has solidly marked Canada as a major hub for EV production.
The Action Plan for Clean-On-Road Transportation:
- will set annually increasing requirements towards achieving 100% light-duty zero-emission vehicle sales by 2035, including mandatory targets of at least 20% of all new light-duty vehicle sales by 2026 and at least 60% by 2030.
- aim to reach 35% of total new medium- and heavy-duty vehicle sales being zero-emission vehicles by 2030. In addition, the Government will develop a medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission vehicle regulation to require 100% of new medium- and heavy-duty vehicle sales to be zero-emission vehicles by 2040 for a subset of vehicle types based on feasibility, with interim 2030 regulated sales requirements that would vary for different vehicle categories based on feasibility, and explore interim targets for the mid-2020s.
- details the measures Canada has already put in place, and those in development, such as consumer incentives and funds for charging infrastructure.
- highlights the steps the Government of Canada has taken to help secure well-paying jobs for Canadians.
There will be progress reports as required under the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act. The first report is planned for 2023.
The transportation sector is Canada’s second-largest source of pollution. Moving to zero-emission vehicles through regulations and investments is a significant part of Canada’s $9.1 billion Emissions Reduction Plan to meet Canada’s Paris Agreement target for 2030 and get on track for net-zero emissions by 2050. Canada is developing regulations for zero-emission vehicles to be 100% of new light-duty vehicle sales by 2035, and 100% of new medium- and heavy-duty vehicles by 2040, where feasible.
The Incentives for Zero-Emission Vehicles Program has already helped Canadians purchase or lease over 180,000 new zero-emission vehicles since 2019. Through Budget 2022, the Government of Canada invested $1.7 billion to continue this program until March 2025, including a broadening of the eligibility under the program. Additionally, in July of this year, the new Incentives for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Zero-Emission Vehicles (iMHZEV) Program was launched. This four-year, close to $550 million program, will help businesses and communities across the country make the switch to zero-emission commercial vehicles.
To date, the Zero-Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program (ZEVIP), has invested in more than 34,500 new charging stations to be installed from coast to coast. Budget 2022 provided Natural Resources Canada’s ZEVIP with an additional $400 million, and Canada’s Infrastructure Bank will invest $500 million to deploy an additional 50,000 electric vehicle chargers by 2027.
