Chicago is the third most populous city in the United States. With nearly 3 million people on the move each day, millions of tons of CO2 leave exhaust pipes and permeate through the atmosphere at an incredible pace as electric vehicles have the potential to reduce CO2 emissions. State-level carbon neutrality goals call for net-zero emissions by 2050, placing unique pressure on large metropolitan areas—such as Chicago—to take action.
To start, racial discrimination has created an environmental landscape that favors richer, whiter neighborhoods. Consequences of air pollution are especially dire in neighborhoods that face historical disinvestment. In Chicago, this means that the burden of poor air quality falls primarily on the South and West side.1 As such, the city should approach carbon neutrality with two key tenets in mind: mitigation and equity.
This should materialize as a City-run program that both (1) incentivizes consumer EV purchases and (2) offers assistance to residents who would not otherwise be able to switch from fuel-powered vehicles. The current EV landscape in Chicago operates at the neighborhood level and largely emphasizes e-bike accessibility. Supplementing e-bike expansion with electric automobile accessibility bolsters the toolkit for climate action at the local level.
Current strategies have included Divvy e-bike expansions into the city’s South and West side; Divvy membership subsidies; and investments in bikeable roadways. Shifting focus to automobiles relies on a similar approach. Namely, the City should leverage neighborhood-level partnerships to decrease EV ownership barriers through three central pillars:
Something to note is that public charging stations should be made available as EV trends continue. In Chicago, most public charging stations are found on the North side and Loop area.2 A similar strategy can target charging stations.
City of Chicago
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