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But the used market is defying economic theory\u2014lower prices aren\u2019t increasing sales. And experts say that\u2019s not likely to change until the U.S. improves its charging infrastructure.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we all know, the infrastructure is not up to par In the U.S\u2026It remains a challenge,\u201d Tyson Jominy, a vice president in the Data & Analytics division at J.D. Power, told Fortune<\/em>. \u201cThat really has been the weak link for EVs in this country.\u201d<\/p>\n Most new EVs still cost over $50,000,<\/a> and they cater to higher-end buyers. But now, as the market for used EVs grows, lower-income households can finally access cheap used EVs. But analysts believe that sparse charging infrastructure is what\u2019s holding these would-be buyers back.<\/p>\n \u201cThe lower the price point we go on EVs, the more that the buyer has to rely on the infrastructure\u2014the more likely the buyer is not to own a house to have\u2026a garage,\u201d Jominy said. \u201cEV prices have come down, but we aren\u2019t seeing the same consumer response to the [falling] prices that we would see on the gasoline side.\u201d<\/p>\n The Department of Energy estimated last fall that the country<\/a> will need around 10 times more charging ports than are currently operational to support the number of EVs the Biden administration hopes to put on the road by 2030.<\/p>\n \u201cAs EV registrations continue to grow each quarter\u2026public EVSE installations will need to ramp up significantly to keep up with demand,\u201d read the Energy Department\u2019s report<\/a>.<\/p>\n Exports point out that a lack of public charging infrastructure disproportionately affects lower-income potential EV buyers, who are more likely to live in apartments without off-street parking and depend on public charging facilities that largely don\u2019t exist yet. A recent McKinsey report<\/a> found that 65% of all EV charging was done at owners\u2019 residences, which is generally only possible if the owner has a garage or driveway.<\/p>\n \u201cSo when you get down to households with lower income\u2026you start to get to [people who are more likely to live in] shared housing and apartments,\u201d K. Venkatesh Prasad, senior vice president of research at the Center for Automotive Research, told Fortune. <\/em>\u201cEven if it\u2019s urban, you don\u2019t have\u2026sufficient charging ports per EV. You want that to be four or five, not eight or nine or 10 cars per charging port [like we have now.]\u201d<\/p>\n There are currently about 8,000 EV charging ports across the country<\/a>, or roughly 1 for every 16 gas stations, and new ports are being added at increasing rates. Currently, almost a third of them can only be used to charge Teslas\u2014but that\u2019s set to change in a few months<\/a>, when other models will become compatible with Tesla\u2019s superchargers by using an adapter. That could give a demand boost to the bottom-dollar used EV sector.<\/p>\n While sales may be stalled for now, \u201cwe probably are getting close to getting past [it] with the Tesla Supercharger network opening up,\u201d Jominy said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nSubscribe to the Eye on AI newsletter to stay abreast of how AI is shaping the future of business. Sign up<\/a> for free.<\/div>\n