Uber and Lyft rides in California will be electric by 2030

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The state of California is making it so that ridesharing companies like Uber and Lyft have to transition to a majority of electric vehicles (EVs) in their fleets before the end of the decade. The Clean Miles Standard means that 90-percent of ride-hailing miles driven in the state need to be in EVs by 2030.

The state’s mandate also means that they need to start the electrification of their fleets by 2023, with at least 2-percent of ridesharing miles by that date.

Other milestones include 50-percent EV miles by 2027 and a 90-percent total by 2030. Expect other states to follow suit with similar EV mandates, as California is often the first to adopt new EV measures.

Both Lyft and Uber have previously said they’re aiming to be all-EV by 2030, so this mandate from the California Air Resources Board (CARB) seems more like holding the ridesharing companies to account to me.

Both ridesharing companies have initiatives to help drivers with the transition, whether that’s affording the EVs or making rentals available if they don’t want to own their own EVs. Service fees are also lowered for those making the switch, as an added sweetener. Both Uber and Lyft have called for the government to increase aid for those low- and middle-income drivers to make the switch in time.

This news is good news for EV fans, and for the environment, naturally. Lyft and Uber rides create 69-percent more toxins than the other transportation options that they supplant.

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Joe Rice-Jones

Maker, meme-r, and unabashed geek with nearly half a decade of blogging experience at KnowTechie, SlashGear and XDA Developers. If it runs on electricity (or even if it doesn't), Joe probably has one around his office somewhere, with particular focus in gadgetry and handheld gaming. Shoot him an email at joe@knowtechie.com.