Arizona Wants Electric Cars To Become A Thing Of The Past

Let's rewind the clock to the mid 2010s. Electric cars had just begun making waves in the automotive industry, but they seemed nothing more than a passing fad.

Over the past decade, electric vehicles (or EVs for short) have exploded in popularity. They're growing into a larger and larger market, but Arizona seems determined to make sure they never gain prominence in the Grand Canyon State.

What are HOV Lanes?

Since the late 1990s, lanes marked "HOV" have been popping up on highways across the country. This stands for "High Occupancy Vehicle" lanes, and requires two or more people to be riding in a vehicle in order to ride in that lane.

These lanes were put in place to lower greenhouse gas emissions, and as such, Arizona believed they could kill two birds with one stone: encourage commuting with others to work, and make electric cars more favorable. So, since 2005, EVs, or any vehicles running on alternative fuel could use the HOV lane solo. That's all about to change.

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Arizona Changes its Mind About EVs

This permit that allowed solo EV drivers in HOV lanes is finally coming to an end, 20 years after its inception. On September 30th, HOV lanes will require every vehicle, EV or not, to have two or more passengers.

This isn't set in stone yet, however. Congress does have the power to either extend the permit or make it permanent, but no such conversations have begun yet. If you do drive an EV, especially commuting to work, make sure you get the most out of your solo commute these next few months, because it could all come crumbling down soon.

[AZ Family][NBC12]