Factors Affecting the Adoption Intention of Electric Vehicles: The Roles of Objective, Perceived and Prospective Accessibility

In the era of new mobility, promoting Electric Vehicle (EV) usage is considered a promising policy to incorporate in the government agenda. While accessibility as a general concept has been recognized as an important factor affecting user’s EV adoption intention, there is a dearth of studies discussing how accessibility determines EV adoption intention. This study uses a novel set of accessibility measures relevant to public EV charging facilities – objective, perceived and prospective accessibility – and investigates how and to what extent these measures affect the EV adoption intention of individuals. The data are primarily based on a recent questionnaire survey of driving license holders in Hong Kong, including both EV owners and non EV owners. The results show that objective accessibility – the number of (population weighted) standard chargers publicly available within five minutes’ walking distance of an individual’s residential district – is highly significant in influencing an individual’s EV purchase intention. Additionally, subjective accessibility, as measured by four Likert-scale questions, is highly significant as well. Moreover, prospective accessibility also significantly influences non EV owner adoption intention. We also find that environmental consciousness and prior experience with EV have significant effects. This study provides a valuable reference for the importance of accessibility of public EV chargers on customer EV adoption intention in the context of a high density Asian city. Based on the findings, we provide a number of policy recommendations that integrate accessibility planning strategies into e-mobility promotion in cities that aspire to promote e-mobility.