[ti:US Transportation Official Warns on Weight of Electric Vehicles]
[by:www.21voa.com]
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[00:00.04]As electric vehicles become more popular in the United States,
[00:04.88]a government safety expert
[00:07.16]is expressing concern about the automobiles.
[00:10.68]Jennifer Homendy runs the National Transportation Safety Board, or NTSB.
[00:17.96]In a recent speech, she noted that manufacturers
[00:22.60]are making electric cars heavier and heavier.
[00:26.68]This is a problem in crashes with lighter, traditional cars.
[00:32.32]She gave the example of one large vehicle called a Hummer.
[00:38.60]The automobile's design is based on military vehicles.
[00:44.16]The new electric Hummer weighs about 4,000 kilograms.
[00:49.92]The battery that powers it weighs 1,300 kilograms.
[00:56.04]The battery alone is heavier than the Honda Civic,
[01:00.84]a small Japanese car with a traditional engine.
[01:06.64]Homendy said she is worried about "increased
[01:11.04]risk of severe injury and death for all road users."
[01:16.52]She noted the size and power of the newer vehicles.
[01:23.20]The electric vehicles need large, heavy batteries
[01:27.80]in order to travel the longer distances many drivers seek.
[01:34.88]Experts say it will take years to develop
[01:38.88]smaller batteries that provide the same result.
[01:43.40]Homendy said she is pleased that President Joe Biden
[01:47.96]wants to reduce the number of vehicles that harm the environment.
[01:52.16]But she is still concerned about the risk from heavy vehicles.
[01:58.40]"We have to be careful that we aren't also creating
[02:01.40]unintended consequences," she said.
[02:04.52]Some of the new electric vehicles that are expected
[02:08.00]to be popular include Ford's F-150 truck and Mustang Mach E.
[02:14.64]She said they are hundreds of kilograms heavier
[02:18.16]than their gasoline-powered versions.
[02:21.68]The NTSB investigates accidents but does not make rules.
[02:27.36]New rules must come from the National
[02:30.76]Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
[02:35.08]Michael Brooks runs the Center for Auto Safety.
[02:39.16]He has the same concerns as Homendy.
[02:42.40]He said there has been little research
[02:45.72]about the growing weight of electric vehicles.
[02:48.80]He pointed to a 2011 study that showed a crash
[02:54.68]including a vehicle with about 500 extra kilograms
[02:58.80]increased the chances of death by 47 percent.
[03:04.32]That study does not take into account design changes
[03:09.04]that make it hard to see from the new electric vehicles.
[03:13.20]He also said the electric vehicles
[03:16.92]can reach top speed faster than gas-powered cars.
[03:23.80]"These bigger, heavier batteries
[03:26.60]are going to cause more damage," Brooks said.
[03:29.92]"It's a simple matter of mass and speed."
[03:34.24]The number of electric vehicles sold in the U.S. in 2022
[03:39.16]rose by almost 65 percent compared to the year before.
[03:44.32]They now make up nearly six percent of new vehicles on the road.
[03:49.96]The number of vehicles with heavy batteries will only grow.
[03:55.28]Biden's administration wants electric vehicles
[03:59.48]to be 50 percent of all new vehicles sold by 2030.
[04:04.20]I'm Dan Friedell. 更多听力请访问21VOA.COM