Impact of range anxiety on driver route choices using a panel-integrated choice latent variable model

There has been a significant increase in private vehicle ownership in the last decade leading to substantial increase in air pollution, depleting fuel reserves, etc. One of the alternatives known as battery operated electric vehicles (BEVs) has the potential to reduce carbon footprints due to lesser or no emissions and thus the focus on shifting people from gasoline operated vehicles (GVs) to BEVs has increased considerably recently. However, BEVs have a limited ‘range’ and takes considerable time to completely recharge its battery. In addition, charging stations are not as pervasive as gasoline stations. As a result a new fear of getting stranded is observed in BEV drivers, known as range anxiety. Range anxiety has the potential to substantially affect the route choice of a BEV user. It has also been a major cause of lower market shares of BEVs. Range anxiety is a latent feeling which cannot be measured directly. It is not homogenous either and varies among different socio-economic groups. Thus, a better understanding of BEV users’ behavior may shed light on some potential solutions that can then be used to improve their market shares and help in developing new network models which can realistically capture effects of varying EV adoptions. Thus, in this study, we analyze the factors that may impact BEV users’ range anxiety in addition to their route choice behavior using the integrated choice latent variable model (ICLV) proposed by Bhat and Dubey (2014). Our results indicate that an individual’s range anxiety is significantly affected by their age, gender, income, awareness of charging stations, BEV ownership and other category vehicle ownership. Further, it also highlights the importance of including disutility caused by distance while considering network flow models with combined GV and BEV assignment. Finally, a more concentrated effort can be directed towards increasing the awareness of charging station locations in the neighborhood to help reduce the psychological barrier associated with range anxiety. Overcoming this barrier may help increase consumer confidence, resulting in increased BEV adoption and ultimately will lead towards a potentially pollution-free environment.