Our friend and economist Patrick Anderson of Anderson Economic Group has released a new study that may bring tears to Pete Buttigieg’s eyes. It turns out, Pete, buying a Tesla or another EV won’t save money.

Anderson looks at the costs and savings over the life of the vehicle and finds that it is true that higher gas prices in 2021 make EVs more financially attractive.

But; “For most American households, EVs remain more expensive to operate than gas-fueled cars. Most Americans drive mid-priced cars, economy cars, and pickup trucks. For them, the cost of operating traditional vehicles is still less than an EV.”

He finds that EVs cost about 50 cents more per 100 miles drive. So over the life of a car? That is about $500 extra cost. For more expensive commercial vehicles that have to pay full cost for battery charging, the net cost rises to about $4,000.

One huge financial advantage of EVs is that they don’t pay for the maintenance of the roads and highways – i.e. state and federal gas taxes.

That policy can’t continue. Why should relatively affluent EV drivers not pay for the roads in the same way as everyone else?