81
If accurate, such a statement even quantifies the equity issues, placing a
single EV adopter above the needs of thousands of public transport
users—it privileges one “wealthy” person over 30,000 potential “common people.”
In the domain of energy democracy and public participation, respondents raised concerns that EVs only created (or were backed by) exclusionary policies and reflected elitism in national planning and policymaking.
Essentially, these comments draw on or connect with some of the distributive justice issues mentioned above, such as equity, but relate it back to
procedures and the regulatory process. In this way, issues of unfair access
and elitism become reflected and entrenched in policy, which then further
perpetuate inequity across mobility systems. For instance, one respondent
suggested that:
In the beginning, I thought the negative reactions to Teslas was related to envy
or jealousy. But after thinking more about it, it’s a rational and emotional
reaction. Why should we lose a lot of money for rich people getting a cheap,
expensive, luxury car? The politicians …are [being] controlled.
Another framed this as a procedural justice issue about policy, rather
than one purely of distributive justice:
People see EVs as only for the upper class. They find them very unfair. To the politicians, electric mobility sounds very good and they remain convinced that EVs
can help store energy, decarbonize transport, and balance the grid.
Yet another elaborated that:
In Finland, government policy for EVs has been socially catastrophic, because
only rich people buy new Teslas (laughs).
Other respondents mentioned the problem as one of “politicians prioritising between hundreds of goals,” and perhaps lacking the “political will”
to make controversial decisions or challenge entrenched interest.
At another level, respondents mentioned that the widespread adoption
of electric mobility systems, especially in a vehicle-to-grid (V2G) configuration, could potentially erode democratic processes, and undermine people’s autonomy or liberty. One respondent, for example, noticed a
reluctance among consumers to “become dependent on some distant
7 GOVERNANCE AND LEGITIMATION IN THE TRANSITION TO NORDIC…
If accurate, such a statement even quantifies the equity issues, placing a
single EV adopter above the needs of thousands of public transport
users—it privileges one “wealthy” person over 30,000 potential “common people.”
In the domain of energy democracy and public participation, respondents raised concerns that EVs only created (or were backed by) exclusionary policies and reflected elitism in national planning and policymaking.
Essentially, these comments draw on or connect with some of the distributive justice issues mentioned above, such as equity, but relate it back to
procedures and the regulatory process. In this way, issues of unfair access
and elitism become reflected and entrenched in policy, which then further
perpetuate inequity across mobility systems. For instance, one respondent
suggested that:
In the beginning, I thought the negative reactions to Teslas was related to envy
or jealousy. But after thinking more about it, it’s a rational and emotional
reaction. Why should we lose a lot of money for rich people getting a cheap,
expensive, luxury car? The politicians …are [being] controlled.
Another framed this as a procedural justice issue about policy, rather
than one purely of distributive justice:
People see EVs as only for the upper class. They find them very unfair. To the politicians, electric mobility sounds very good and they remain convinced that EVs
can help store energy, decarbonize transport, and balance the grid.
Yet another elaborated that:
In Finland, government policy for EVs has been socially catastrophic, because
only rich people buy new Teslas (laughs).
Other respondents mentioned the problem as one of “politicians prioritising between hundreds of goals,” and perhaps lacking the “political will”
to make controversial decisions or challenge entrenched interest.
At another level, respondents mentioned that the widespread adoption
of electric mobility systems, especially in a vehicle-to-grid (V2G) configuration, could potentially erode democratic processes, and undermine people’s autonomy or liberty. One respondent, for example, noticed a
reluctance among consumers to “become dependent on some distant
7 GOVERNANCE AND LEGITIMATION IN THE TRANSITION TO NORDIC…