Electronic Vehicles will soon appear in Japan
Small-sized, environmental-friendly and cheap-priced electronic car, called the ZEVe ultracompact, will soon be running on the roads of Japan. The establishment of this car costs Toyota Motor Corporation $254,800, only for the approval from Japan’s government, a quota of up to 70,000 units annually. From the perspective of the company, “This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance”, stated by Yoshiro Sugimoto, a veteran of the company.
I believe that this product will bring about many positive contributions to Japan. For the government’s concern, it reduces pollution. For smaller businesses, it is an ideal transportation option with very low cost. More importantly, it maximized transportation efficiency, as stated in the article referenced below, like “one man driving a four-seat car.”
However, it may cause even more serious traffic problem in Japan, given Japan’s huge population density, because most customers of this car would be those who didn’t have a car initially. Therefore, although it is small, the establishment of this vehicle will not reduce any current existing car; it may only provide a chance for low income people to update their bikes to faster “bikes”. Maybe this is the major reason why the government sets that quota.
Related link:
1. http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-10-04/japan-tries-cars-that-make-the-mini-look-maxi