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Motorists looking for more cost-efficient and eco-friendly options are driving a renewed
interest in electric vehicles. And here in Korea... the nation's resort island
of Jeju has become the test bed for EVs. Our Laah Hyun-kyung reports on plans to make
Jeju a carbon-free island. Korea had close to two-thousand electric vehicle charging
stations as of the end of last year. A quarter of those are on Jeju Island, which
only covers about 2 percent of Korea's territory. Jeju officials have been pushing to transform
the island, Korea's largest, into a carbon-free zone,... saying there is only about 200 kilometers
of road around the coast and the island is not as hilly as the mainland.
"It helps a lot that Jeju is an island. This initiative is part of a smart-grid project
started seven years ago. Currently, there are 497 charging facilities on Jeju Island,
making it one of the world's best places with an EV charging infrastructure."
"So far, Jeju Island has about 360 electric vehicles running and by the year 2030 it plans
to up that number to 370-thousand."
People are definitely becoming more aware of the merits of owning one of these vehicles.
The government's move to provide subsidies for new EV owners has also helped make them
more popular. Including tax breaks, the subsidies can amount
to as much as 22-thousand dollars, or potentially half the purchase price.
"I've been waiting for the past six months because I heard about the government subsidies."
"I didn't think it was going to be nice but it's a lot better than I expected. It's comfortable
and quiet."
Jeju Island began offering EV rental car services at the start of the year as well.
There are about 30 electric cars ready to be rented out -- with 10 per week rented on
average as of now. Officials plan to make another 30 cars available
for rental by the end of the year. Laah Hyun-kyung, Arirang News, Jeju.