EV/AV Report: B.C. government announces end to EV tax exemption; while Honda partners with Avride to develop robotaxis

Toronto, Ontario – In this weekly electric and autonomous vehicle report, the government of British Columbia has announced the end to the province’s EV tax exemption; while Honda has announced a partnership with Avride to develop robotaxis.

Back in tax

The government of British Columbia is reportedly ending its sales tax exemption for used electric and zero-emission vehicles beginning May 1, 2025.

As noted in online reports, this decision comes two years ahead of schedule, but would save the province $73 million in forgone taxes from over the past two fiscal years.

The change was announced in the province’s budget, released last Tuesday.

“The intent of these incentives overall was to address the difference between EVs and other vehicles, and as the gap closed, these programs were always intended to be phased out,” concluded Energy Minister Adrian Dix in an official statement.

Robotaxis rumba

Hyundai has reportedly partnered with Avride to expand the start-up fleet's robotaxis.

The Texas-based start-up specifically aims to expand its fleet to 100 Hyundai IONIQ 5 vehicles in 2025 and then again in 2026.

Avride noted in an online statement that its latest IONIQ 5 vehicles will be part of its robotaxi services, which are exclusively available through Uber-affiliated vehicles in Dallas, Texas.

The IONIQ 5 vehicles will be manufactured at the automaker’s Metaplant facility in Georgia. Following this, they will then be retrofitted with Avride’s self-driving software.