Canadian Zero-Emissions Vehicle Survey 2023 (CZEVS 2023)

Zero-emissions vehicles (ZEVs) are an essential component of Canada’s climate strategy, as Canada aims for ZEVs to make up 100% of new light-duty vehicle sales by 2035. ZEVs can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollutants associated with passenger transportation. This transition will depend on many factors, such as ensuring that consumers have access to affordable ZEVs and recharging infrastructure. Consumer awareness, perceptions, and interests may transform rapidly, as ZEV technologies, models, and infrastructure develop.

In July 2023, START implemented a survey with 2,555 representative Canadians to examine preferences for ZEVs in-depth. This research can help us to better understand changing consumer preferences for ZEVs, resistance against ZEVs, and connections to incumbent car use patterns. We further aim to update 2017 choice data (from CZEVS 2017), which can be used to estimate consumer demand for plug-in electric vehicles.

The survey assessed respondents’:

• Car ownership and travel patterns
• Awareness of and familiarity with ZEVs
• Access to recharging infrastructure
• ZEV perceptions, resistance, and image associations
• Perceptions of private car-based mobility (“automobility”)
• Support and opposition to ZEV and climate policies

The survey also included a vehicle buyer’s guide explaining ZEV technology and recharging in plain language and a stated choice experiment investigating the choice between conventional, hybrid, and zero-emission vehicles. Please contact zoe_long@sfu.ca to request survey design documents.

Gauer, Axsen, Long and Dütschke (2025) use this data to investigate the influence of prevailing car ownership and use patterns or “automobility” on ZEV preferences, finding significant associations between consumer engagement with automobility and ZEV preferences. The findings suggest that ZEVs are preferred for lowering the environmental impacts of car-based mobility; however, ZEV adoption otherwise builds upon car ownership attachment and may continue aspects such as driving enjoyment and identity expression through cars.

Long, Axsen, Gauer and Niet (2025) compare CZEVs 2023 choice data to past stated choice experiments to investigate changes in consumer ZEV awareness and preferences between 2013 and 2023 in Canada. This analysis indicates that consumer ZEV valuations have been mostly unchanged in the past decade except for increasing home and fast charging valuations, despite growing awareness and familiarity with ZEVs.

More articles are under peer review and will be posted here soon.