Admit it, you’re curious about electric cars. It seems like they’re showing up in neighborhoods all over, they sound like something out of Tom Cruise’s Minority Report, and everybody who drives them love them.

Well, if you live in or near Virginia, you’re in luck: Generation180, in partnership with Green Energy Consumers Alliance and Virginia Clean Cities, is launching a new campaign, Electrify Your Ride VA, aimed at making electric cars more accessible and even more affordable than ever. Over the next nine months, we’ll be bringing easy-to-understand educational information, local events (that are actually fun), and dealership discounts to a Virginia city near you.

This is definitely your best chance to satiate that curiosity—and to start driving an electric car yourself.

Why electric cars?

As you may know, there’s more to electric cars then just cool new tech. Not only are they now an economical choice for millions of drivers, but they can make your life simpler: no more gas stations (80 percent of charging happens at home) and way fewer visits to your auto mechanic, for starters.

Best of all, though, electric cars enable you to play a part in Virginia’s transition to clean energy. Electric transportation is both a major reducer of carbon emissions and a critical piece of the puzzle that’ll get us to a future powered by renewables like wind and solar.

With regard to emissions, over 45 percent of energy-related carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions in Virginia come from transportation. By switching from a gas car to an electric one, the average Virginia resident can reduce the emissions of their drive by 70 percent.

While that emissions impact is massive in and of itself, here’s the other half of the story: electrifying everything—especially our transportation—is a crucial part of getting to a clean energy-powered world. Electric vehicles are a huge part of how we get fossil fuels out of our lives.

Plug into the Electrify Your Ride VA campaign

So you’re officially ready to ditch last century’s technology and learn more about electric cars—that’s fabulous. Here’s a quick overview of what the campaign is offering:

• Connect: Come to a local event near you to check out electric cars and meet the members of your community who drive them every day. During this year’s National Drive Electric Week (Sept. 14-22), we’re holding the following free events:

•  9/14 – Richmond
•  9/15 – Charlottesville
•  9/21 – Roanoke
•  9/22 – Fairfax

• Learn: Visit the campaign’s educational pages to learn more about electric cars, including how to charge them, what incentives are available in Virginia, and more.
• Make a pledge: Sign the “Going Electric” pledge to commit to making your next car electric. Driving electric is one of the most impactful actions you can take as an individual, and this is a way to take the first step.
• Save: Use the campaign’s car-browsing platform to explore the latest models available in Virginia, take advantage of no-hassle discounts that we’ve already arranged, and sign up for a test drive at a local dealer near you.

We’re excited to help drive the awareness and adoption of a crucial clean energy solution in Virginia. Come out to an event this September and say hello—to us and to your neighbors who have made the switch. We’re pretty sure you’ll be glad you did.

Don’t live in Virginia and bummed about it? Don’t worry, we’ve got plans to expand the campaign…

Check out the campaign website at ElectrifyYourRideVA.org

Join us this month for a series of fun and educational events featuring electric cars!  To celebrate National Drive Electric Week, local community members will be bringing their own electric cars to share about the benefits of driving electric. In partnership with cities and a variety of local, regional, and national nonprofits, the Electrify Your Ride VA campaign will showcase currently available models of electric cars, provide access to information about charging stations and give residents an opportunity to check out the cars for themselves.

These free, family-friendly events are open to the public and will feature free refreshments, food vendors, activities for kids, and opportunities for community engagement.

Learn more and register to attend (or bring your electric car to) an event near you:

• • 9/14 – Richmond
  • 9/15 – Charlottesville
  • 9/21 – Roanoke
  • 9/22 – Fairfax

What’s Electrify Your Ride VA?

Three nonprofits—Generation180, Green Energy Consumers Alliance, and Virginia Clean Cities—are showing up in cities across Virginia to raise awareness around the benefits of driving electric, connect local electric car owners with neighbors that want to learn more, and make discounts on the latest electric models available to communities across the state. Sign up for our email list below to stay updated on the latest from the campaign.