Progress is slow, but at least there is SOME progress. From the article: To date, only westernmost British Columbia allows low speed electric vehicles on its urban roads. This week, Quebec in eastern Canada announced a three-year pilot project that would permit starting in July the Zenn and an electric truck called Nemo on its roads with posted speed limits of 50 kilometers (31 miles) per hour. Manufacturers are hoping Quebec's pilot may spur its neighbors to jump on the bandwagon and eventually make it possible to drive an electric car from coast to coast across all 10 of Canada's provinces. So, BC must have some now, and I think we'll see some here in Quebec soon. I've been seeing LOTS of smart cars commuting to Ottawa lately. Qubecers are more friendly to small cars I think, like Europeans. 50 kmh won't do for me though. My own street is 70 kmh and that's the speed till you get to the town/suburb area. This speed thing is a safety issue that is understandable. Lots of 80 kmh drivers stack up behind a 40-50 kmh driver and get mad and pass and drive stupid etc. But also from the article: "But Transport Canada says the vehicles made of lightweight metals and plastics are not safe to drive on Canada's open roads, and would not stand up in a collision." So are these EVs cheap plastic and dangerous in collisions ? Have there been crash tests and do they pass ? That's all that important IMO. Me, I wanna see the "instant styro-foam" (airbag like goo that hardens quickly) car-filling stuff as seen in the futuristic Woody Allen movie Sleeper.
In Europe there is a class of vehicle called quadricycle (I think) which bypasses the safety requirements of normal cars and allows electric cars on the road such as the Reva Gee Wizz. The Solar Shop Australia tried and failed to have the Reva accepted by local authorities but couldn't get past the requirement for the car to be crash tested to comply with Australian vehicle design rules. This is how governments stop small companies getting started and protect the interests of big auto makers.
NEV not permitted on roads in Canada yet, which is what the ZENN is. However electric scooters are allowed.
The maximum speed of a Zenn is 25 mph. No idea how long it takes to get up to that. There aren't many roads around our community where you would not incite road rage driving one. The stated use on their website is within gated communities, where the golf carts putt around, or on University campuses. I think the electric solution is a bit different in Canada where winter driving requires a heating system, rear and windshield defrosters, where the utility of EV's seems limited. How fast and how far can you go in -20 degree weather on a charge? My Prius spends MUCH less time with its ICE shut off in Canada's most southerly city in the winter.
The topic title is misleading. It's not EVs that most Canadian provinces prohibit. It's low-speed vehicles that are not crash-tested. Such vehicles are usually EVs. But I'm sure a proper EV such as the Rav4EV or the eBox from ACP would be permitted.
