San Luis Obispo is updating its climate plan, and we already have a lot to be proud of. Our city’s greenhouse gas emissions have gone down by 20 percent since 2005. We now have 10 electric buses, with more on their way as our diesel-powered buses age out. But we can do more, especially in the transportation sector—our biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions.
There are several myths that keep people from making the switch to an electric vehicle:
“It will run out of charge.” Actually, EVs can now travel 200 to 350 miles on a charge, while many people’s daily driving is much shorter. The U.S. now has more than 250,000 public charging ports.
“EVs cost more.” The purchase price can be a bit higher, but lower fuel and maintenance costs easily offset that difference over time.
“The battery will wear out.” Battery failures are rare: A federal summary of a large study found that just 1.5 percent of the EVs studied had battery replacements due to failure.
You don’t like Mr. Musk? There are plenty of other EV manufacturers. Stop paying an arm and a leg at the pump. Plug in to an EV—and get a pleasant shock from the savings.
Don Gaede
SLO
This article appears in Nov 12-19, 2026.
