I’ve been using ride-sharing services from Uber (NYSE: UBER) and Lyft (NASDAQ: LYFT) for a long time.
In fact, outside of New York City, I can’t even tell you the last time I used a taxi.
They tend to be more expensive, the drivers tend to be less friendly, and the convenience of using my phone to hire and pay for an Uber or Lyft makes the outdated taxi model quite inconvenient.
And honestly, I really enjoy talking to my Uber and Lyft drivers.
In fact, on my last trip to the Bay Area, I had a really interesting conversation with my Lyft driver about his car.
It was a brand-new Hyundai IONIQ 5, and I asked him how he liked it.
He liked it just fine and told me it was actually his second electric car.
He also owns a Chevy Bolt and said for his job it makes no sense to own anything other than an electric car.
Between gas prices, maintenance costs, and conveniences, he said it was a no-brainer.
And that got me thinking.
Five years ago, it was quite rare to get an Uber or Lyft driver using an electric car.
Today, I would say at least 30% of my rides have been in electric cars.
While this is only my experience, that’s still a pretty impressive adoption rate. But again, it makes sense, not just from an economic perspective but from a convenience one too.
And that adoption rate is about to get a serious shot of steroids.
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Solar-Powered Electric Cars Will Be the New Normal
Last week, Uber confirmed that all Uber drivers must use an electric car by 2030. Drivers in the U.S. and Canada who have not transitioned to an electric vehicle by then will no longer be allowed to drive for the company.
Interestingly, the company already integrated an option onto the app that allows riders to select drivers using only electric vehicles. In addition, Uber pays its drivers $1 for every trip taken in an electric car and even helps cover some of the charging costs.
Of course, by the time 2030 rolls around, it’s not going to take much heavy lifting on Uber's part to get its drivers to switch to electric vehicles… mostly because for them, the economics simply don’t favor internal combustion vehicles when compared with electric cars.
That’s the reality today, and those economics will be even more favorable by 2030.
In fact, by 2030, some of these drivers won’t even need to plug into a public charger at all.
As I mentioned last week, Aptera Motors is gearing up to offer a new 1,000-mile-range electric car.
Full-time Uber and Lyft drivers can rack up about 1,000 miles per week. So theoretically, with an Aptera, these drivers could work an entire week without having to recharge their vehicles…
They could potentially go even longer when you consider that this vehicle also has solar cells integrated into the roof that can provide enough charge for an additional 40 miles.
Aptera isn’t the only electric vehicle integrating solar cells into its vehicle either.
There’s another company, which is actually publicly traded, that has successfully integrated solar cells into the entire body of its car, not just the roof. The result is a 70-mile range generated solely from solar.
While that may not be enough for your typical full-time Uber or Lyft driver, it more than exceeds the daily commute of the average American, who drives no more than 29 miles per day.
Of course, this solar-powered vehicle can also be plugged into any outlet and give you enough juice for about 200 miles.
My point is simple: Not only will all Uber drivers be buying electric cars by 2030, but most average consumers will be too.
The most recent data from Bloomberg shows that by 2030, more than half of all vehicles purchased in the U.S., China, and Japan will be electric.
And guess what?
Electric cars that can be charged by the sun will ultimately dominate the market, which is why I’m so bullish on solar-power electric vehicles — particularly this one.
Make no mistake: This is the future of transportation, and only a fool would ignore the opportunity to profit from this reality.
Learn how you can get a piece of this action right now.
To a new way of life and a new generation of wealth… Jeff Siegel
@JeffSiegel on Twitter
Check us out on YouTube!Jeff is the founder and managing editor of Green Chip Stocks. For more on Jeff, go to his editor’s page.
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