Due to lower electricity rates and provincial rebates, many rural communities across Quebec are already transitioning to EVs, including the scenic region of Lanaudière. As of 2017, this rural cottage country region located to the northeast of Montreal had the highest EV sales in the country, claiming the title of EV capital of Canada. Within the area, a majority of EVs are sold from a single dealership, Bourgeois Chevrolet, located in the small town of Rawdon. In 2016, the dealership sold almost 400 EVs with the plug-in hybrid Chevrolet Volt as the bestselling model.

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At the provincial-level, Quebec has been a leader in EV sales for years with more than 17,500 EVs sold in 2018; this represents 42% of total EV sales in Canada with Ontario following close behind at 37%. In addition to this, EV sales continued to grow across Canada in the first quarter of 2019 highlighting that there is a promising future for EVs in both rural and urban communities.

 

 

References:

• Signature Electric Team, The EV capital of Canada, Signature Electric, 2017. At https://signatureelectric.ca/blog/the-ev-capital-of-canada/

• Electric Mobility Canada, Electric vehicle sales in Canada in 2018: A phenomenal record-breaking year, 2018. At https://emc-mec.ca/wp-content/uploads/EMC-Sales-Report-Rapport-de-ventes-M%C3%89C-2018.pdf

• Electric Mobility Canada, Electric vehicle sales in Canada – Q1 2019: Canada reaches over 100,000 electric vehicles, 2019. At https://www.emc-mec.ca/wp-content/uploads/Sales-Report-Q1-2019.pdf