Drivers of electric vehicles, running not on gasoline, but with an electric motor as a power source, have been steadily increasing in rural societies. Infrastructure for spreading electric automobiles has been consolidated in agricultural areas, enabling drivers to quickly charge their electric vehicles even at offices of an agricultural cooperative (JA) and farmer’s markets.
Yoshinori Yokota, 51, producing blueberries at Shiranuka-cho in Hokkaido, sometimes drives as long as 150 kilometers per day to deliver his fresh blueberries and processed products. He has driven an electric automobile for four years and said “Although an electric car initially costed more than a gasoline-powered vehicle, it has resulted in a cost saving.”
According to Yoshinori Yokota, maintenance costs of his electric automobile including an electric bill are estimated 30 to 40 thousand yen per year. He figures that his annual fuel cost can be reduced by as much as 400 to 500 thousand yen.
A survey conducted by Next Generation Vehicle Promotion Center, based at Chuo-ku, Tokyo, the total of electric automobiles in the country came to more than 70 thousand as of March 2014.