Switzerland preps to ban use of electric vehicles in case of energy shortage
By ALEC SCHEMMEL
Switzerland preps to ban use of electric vehicles in case of energy shortage
by ALEC SCHEMMEL | The National DeskMonday, December 5th 2022
Mid adult woman loading groceries into her electric car. Okayama, Japan.
BERN, SWITZERLAND (TND) — Switzerland is prepping to ban the use of electric vehicles for non-essential journeys in case of a nationwide energy shortage spurred by the war in Ukraine.
Roughly two weeks ago, the Swiss Federal Council advanced draft ordinances to be put in place in the case energy availability become an issue.
Among those draft laws was the “Ordinance on Restrictions and Prohibitions on the Use of Electrical Energy.”
The proposed law includes two tiers with varying restrictions based on the severity of the country’s energy needs.
The first tier, labeled the “emergency” tier, involves three levels of restrictions.
If Switzerland makes it to the third level of the “emergency” tier, electric vehicle use will only be allowed for absolutely necessary journeys, such as the grocery store or driving to doctor appointments.
Switzerland considering a ban on driving electric vehicles this winter due to concern over electrical capacity of the grid,” green energy critic Patrick Moore tweeted. “The logical conclusion of a dysfunctional energy policy. 100% EVs requires doubling electricity generation.”
Other restrictions implemented at that same level within the “emergency” tier include requiring most private or public rooms to set their thermostats below 65 degrees Fahrenheit and limiting the hours of operation that retail stores can remain open.
The second tier, dubbed the “crisis” level, could lead to hot water being disabled in public bathrooms and the use of electric leaf blowers being prohibited, followed by halting any outdoor holiday lighting and even ending sporting events, concerts, film screenings and theatre performances if things get to the most extreme level.
In the U.S., the state of California and the Biden administration have both implemented plans to end the sale of gas-powered vehicles in the next few decades.
However, just a week after California passed its initiative to do so, the state had to tell residents not to charge their electric vehicles during peak hours in an effort to conserve energy amid an intense heat wave that was passing through the state.