Washington State to study gasoline ‘superusers’ in attempt to convince them to switch to electric

Washington state is seeking to study drivers who use a disproportionately large amount of gasoline relative to other drivers, the so-called “superusers.”

Senate Bill (SB) 5689, which was recently passed by the state legislature, allows researchers in the field to find out personal information on these “superusers.”

They will be researching who these drivers are, where they live, what they drive, how much they spend on gasoline, and what might induce them to switch from a gasoline vehicle to a battery-electric vehicle, Driving.ca reports. The results will be collected by January 2023 and will be given to Governor Jay Inslee (D) and the state government for evaluation.

Last July, a Seattle-based electric vehicle (EV) advocacy non-profit called Coltura released a report called “Gasoline Superusers” which likely sparked the state legislature’s effort. Coltura conducted their research through data released by the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) 2017 National Household Travel Survey (NHTS).

The NHTS surveyed 130,000 households, the FHWA calling it “the authoritative source on the travel behavior of the American public” because of nationwide data on every mode of non-commercial travel and the people making the journeys. 

Coltura coined the term “gasoline superuser” based on the fact that, according to the NHTS, 10% of light-duty-vehicle drivers use 32% of the gasoline bought by all light-duty drivers. That 10% sliver of superusers, about 25 million people nationwide, buys least 1,000 gallons per year to drive more than 30,000 miles and consumes more gas than the bottom 60%.

Inslee said in a statement, “Transportation is our state’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions. There is no way to talk about climate change without talking about transportation. This package will move us away from the transportation system our grandparents imagined and towards the transportation system our grandchildren dream of.”

Inslee added that the legislation included funding for the building of thousands of new electric vehicle charging stations, four new hybrid-electric ferries, 25 transit electrification projects, and free fares for riders 18 and younger on public transportation systems.