California air regulators voted on a historic plan to address climate change and harmful pollution.
The state regulators moved forward with a plan to phase out the sale of gas cars over the next 13 years in America’s largest auto market.
“This is a historic moment for California, for our partner states, and for the world as we set forth this path toward a zero-emission future,” said Liane Randolph, chair of the California Air Resources Board (Carb), the regulatory board that voted on the plan.
Transportation is the largest source of climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions in the country, and scientists have said in increasingly dire language that drastic cuts to those emissions are crucial to providing a livable future on the planet.
California officials said the rules by 2037 will cut by 25% smog-causing pollution from light-duty vehicles.
The race now is for automakers to increase the production of electric vehicles. The average price of an electric vehicle is currently $66,000 well beyond the means of many people.
But to make cars more affordable, electric vehicles will need to make batteries more cost-effective.