Understanding barriers to electric vehicle adoption through a quantitative evaluation of urban consumers in China

Electric vehicles (EVs) play a pivotal role globally for addressing environmental challenges. China is playing a key role in driving global adoption. However, significant consumer barriers hinder the widespread adoption of EVs. This study examines five critical barriers to electric vehicle (EV) adoption consumer awareness, charging infrastructure, financial incentives, supply chain inefficiencies, and market competition through a multi-method analysis of 768 urban Chinese consumers. Using correlation, chi-square tests, importance scoring, and factor analysis, we find charging infrastructure insufficiency ( r = 0.78, p < 0.001; mean score 4.32/5.00) and limited consumer awareness ( r = 0.65, p < 0.001; mean score 3.95/5.00) to be the most significant barriers. Supply chain deficiencies ( r = 0.55) and financial incentives ( r = 0.30, p = 0.045) emerged as considerable secondary barriers, while market competition showed a moderate correlation ( r = 0.45, p = 0.010) but was not statistically significant in the chi-square test ( p = 0.134). Chi-square tests reinforce the infrastructure (χ 2 = 18.75) and consumer awareness (χ 2 = 12.40) as pivotal factors. These findings suggest policy attention should focus on three strategic interventions: (1) rapid deployment of charging infrastructure, (2) nationwide consumer education programs, and (3) supply chain optimization. Interventions in these domains may facilitate EV adoption by addressing perceived consumer barriers.