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On July 9, 2025, as electric vehicles roll out across American cities, the question is not just whether they replace gas-powered cars, but whether the system around them changes. A new analysis of Delhi’s ambitious EV policy, originally published by 360info, offers a cautionary tale for the United States: trading a combustion engine for a battery does not automatically deliver cleaner air, fairer mobility, or a smaller carbon footprint.
Delhi’s Electric Vehicles Policy, notified June 30 and effective from July 1, 2026, sets mandatory deadlines: from January 2027, only electric three-wheelers and light goods vehicles can be registered; from April 2028, the same applies to new two-wheelers. Purchase incentives reach ₹30,000 for e-two-wheelers and ₹50,000 for e-autos, with road-tax exemptions for electric cars up to ₹3 million. The policy also supports charging infrastructure, battery recycling, and electric buses.
This is a serious intervention, but as the analyst Soumyajit Bhar writes, “Unless Delhi also reduces car dependence, expands accessible public and shared transport, and distributes the costs of electrification more justly, it will remove pollution from the tailpipe while preserving the unequal and resource-intensive system around it.”
The same risk applies to the United States. Federal incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act, state-level mandates like California’s Advanced Clean Cars II, and the EPA’s new light-duty vehicle emission standards push automakers and consumers toward EVs. Yet the U.S. grid still relies on fossil fuels—coal supplied about 60% of U.S. electricity in 2024, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. While the grid is greening, the climate benefit of EVs depends on the electricity mix, just as in India.
Battery supply chains also raise justice concerns. The International Energy Agency notes that over half of current lithium and copper production is concentrated in areas facing high water stress, including parts of Australia, South America, and Chile. The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act includes critical mineral sourcing requirements, but these do not fully address land conflicts, water depletion, or labor conditions at extraction sites. A 2024 report from the World Resources Institute highlights that U.S. lithium projects in Nevada and California face opposition from Indigenous communities and environmental groups over water use.
Electrification also leaves car-dependent urban design untouched. An electric SUV takes up the same road space, creates the same congestion, and poses similar danger to pedestrians and cyclists as a gasoline SUV. Non-exhaust PM2.5 emissions from tires, brakes, and road surfaces persist—and for heavier EVs, the OECD estimates these can be 3–8% higher than for comparable conventional vehicles. The U.S. Department of Transportation reports that vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in the U.S. increased by 2.5% in 2024, even as EV registrations rose 35%. Without policies to reduce VMT and shift trips to transit, walking, or cycling, electrification alone will not solve congestion or road safety.
In the U.S., the median household income of EV buyers is over $100,000, according to a 2024 Consumer Reports survey. Federal tax credits—up to $7,500 for new EVs and $4,000 for used—primarily benefit higher-income households. A 2023 analysis by the University of California Davis found that the top income quintile claimed 80% of EV tax credits. Meanwhile, delivery workers, ride-hail drivers, and low-income commuters who rely on older, gas-powered cars face higher upfront costs, uncertain used-EV prices, and limited charging access.
Charging infrastructure in the U.S. mirrors the reliability gap. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory found that 20% of public DC fast chargers in a 2023 sample were non-functional. The Biden administration’s $7.5 billion investment in charging under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law aims to address this, but standards for uptime, affordability, and rural access are still being developed. The similarity to Delhi’s charging problems—where 84% of public chargers were non-functional—is striking.
There is also a cultural dimension. In the U.S., the car remains a symbol of freedom, status, and autonomy. An electric pickup or luxury SUV can carry the same aspirational weight as a gas-powered one, now with a green halo. A policy that subsidizes EV ownership without challenging car-centric culture risks decarbonizing aspiration without reducing the demand for energy, materials, and urban space.
A more just mobility system, as the Delhi analysis suggests, would follow the “avoid, shift, improve” framework. The U.S. can draw on the EU’s 2023 Battery Regulation (which mandates carbon disclosure, recycled content, and supply chain due diligence) and apply it more rigorously. It can also look to California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard and the proposed Clean Miles Standard for ride-hailing fleets, which require reductions in VMT alongside powertrain improvements.
The U.S. should also prioritize public transit and active mobility. The American Public Transportation Association reports that bus and rail ridership in 2024 was still 20% below pre-pandemic levels. Federal funding for transit under the IIJA is historically large, but actual spending must ensure that frequent, reliable, affordable services reach underserved communities. Linking EV incentives to income, requiring ride-hailing platforms to share conversion costs, and expanding charging access in multi-unit dwellings are concrete steps.
Delhi’s policy is a necessary beginning, but its danger lies in allowing technological achievement to substitute for harder choices about public transport, urban space, and inequality. The same warning applies to the United States. Unless we also change the system that organizes mobility, aspiration, and access, we will have replaced the engine without changing the direction of travel.
Soumyajit Bhar is Senior Assistant Professor and Director of the Community Transitions Research Centre at the School of Liberal Studies, BML Munjal University. This article is adapted from analysis originally published under Creative Commons by 360info.
