THE GOVERNMENT HAS been urged to provide “targeted measures” to increase electric vehicle (EV) uptake among lower-income households in a bid to reduce carbon emissions.

The Climate Change Advisory Council has today launched the transport chapter of its 2026 annual review and noted that the sector is “consistently the largest source of energy demand in Ireland”.

It accounted for some 42% of energy demand in 2024 and 22% of national carbon emissions.

Meanwhile, the transport sector is projected to exceed its carbon emissions ceiling for the period covering 2026-2030 unless “urgent action” is taken. 

This ceiling sets out the maximum amount of greenhouse gas emissions that are permitted in each sector of the economy.

Increased EV uptake

In order to reduce dependence on fossil fuels for transport, the Council has called for the government to accelerate the expansion of EV charging infrastructure and provide targeted measures to increase EV uptake among lower-income households.

The Council said these measures should also be targeted to areas with limited access to public transport which are “experiencing forced car ownership”.

It noted that only 29% of people in rural areas live within a 15-minute walk to a bus stop, compared to 97% of people living in Dublin city and it suburbs.

Access to rail is even more limited, with only 3% of rural dwellers living within a 15-minute walk to a train station or Luas stop, compare with 51% in Dublin city.

Schemes to increase EV ownership could include modified grants, tax incentives, low-to-zero-interest loans, or social leasing schemes.

EV social leasing schemes have been pioneered in France and allow lower-income households to rent an EV for an affordable fixed monthly fee.

The Council meanwhile said it welcomes the government’s recent scrappage pilot to incentivise the purchase of new EVs.

The new €10 million pilot EV scrappage scheme will provide a €5,000 grant to people who get rid of a vehicle over 13 years old and get an EV in its place.

Elsewhere, the Council said that access to “affordable, reliable and convenient EV charging infrastructure is a critical enabler of EV uptake”.

It noted that while many expect to be able to charge their EVs at home, this is not viable for households without access to off-street parking and that they will face higher costs at public charging points.

The Council noted that the Private Wires Bill provides solutions for on-street EV charging, as it will allow for small-scale private cables so that people with no driveways can charge their electric cars on the street.

The Council also called for a “rapid” expansion of the public charging network, with Ireland trailing well behind the EU average.

The Council added that the reinforcement of Ireland’s electricity grid is necessary to ensure that there is the capacity to support increased charging infrastructure.

The Council also called for the mapping of public EV charging points, including those that are privately operated, to “give people and businesses confidence in the alternatives to fossil fuel use”.

Fuel price shocks

Meanwhile, the Council warned that dependence on fossil fuels is leaving Ireland vulnerable to “repeated fuel price shocks” and that recent emergency fuel excise reductions were “insufficiently targeted and likely to benefit higher income households most”.

Excise on petrol was reduced by 10 cent, bringing the total reduction on petrol to 27 cent, while excise on diesel was also reduced by 10 cent bringing the total reduction on diesel to 32 cent.

These cuts are due to end next month, though Tánaiste Simon Harris this week said government will consider extending them.

The Council recommended that the government introduce targeted supports within the transport sector for those “most exposed and least able to avoid fuel costs”, while maintaining planned carbon tax increases and ring-fencing revenues for climate action.

The Council has also called for increased funding for public transport and the accelerated delivery of projects such as DART+ South West and Luas Finglas.

The Council added that it is “critical that the public transport system in Ireland receives the funding required to deliver affordable, reliable and accessible services” to encourage a shift away from cars.

It also warned that Ireland’s transport network must be made more resilient to extreme weather and noted that Storm Chandra “exposed the vulnerability of road and rail infrastructure”.

Storm Chandra caused widespread traffic and rail disruption, and the cost of repairing damage to local and regional roads caused by the storms is estimated to have hit close to €59 million.

Elsewhere, the Council hit out at a steep increase in school transport fees, which doubled for primary school children earlier this year and increased by a third for post-primary pupils.

The Council warned that this “risks undermining progress made in recent years”.

‘Give people real alternatives’

Alex White, chair of the Climate Change Advisory Council, remarked that the way to “reduce exposure” to fuel shocks is to “give people real alternatives”.

“That means sustained investment in public transport, a charging network people can rely on, and the grid capacity needed to support the switch to electric,” said White.

He added that supports should be “targeted at those most exposed to transport fuel costs, particularly people on lower-incomes and those who are car-dependent because they do not have access to practical alternatives”.