Commuter Electric Vehicle

In my post titled "Triage" I explained why I thought we should focus efforts on reducing our dependence on oil. Here is a way to take a big step in that direction.

Create a CEV class of electric vehicle (Commuter Electric Vehicle) which:

1) Has a maximum speed of 45 mph,
2) Can be driven using a restricted driver's license,
3) Does not require mandatory liability insurance, and
4) Has reduced safety feature requirements.

We should consider letting people that have lost their licenses drive these cars, mainly because at the reduced speed and weight, they are not nearly the road hazard as typical heavier and faster US cars.

This would be an ideal car for many young people. I like the idea that my kids are in cars which only go up to 45 mph and have limited range.  Using lead acid batteries, these vehicle should cost less than $10K.

Given this new vehicle class, these vehicles would fly off the sales lots, and this would make measurable progress towards reducing our dependence on oil.  Notice that this policy requires no direct subsidies, but encourages EVs by removing government administrative restrictions which apply to our current cars.