Electric vehicles were sold as the future of clean transportation. And now the numbers are proving this, not just in reduced emissions but in lives saved.
A sweeping new study published in Nature Health has found that China’s rapid adoption of electric and hybrid vehicles what the country calls “new energy vehicles” has prevented an estimated 262,000 premature deaths. By combining satellite data and machine learning, researchers measured air pollution in 150 Chinese cities. They compared the actual pollution levels to a hypothetical situation in which every vehicle on the road still used a combustion engine. The results are stunning. Carbon monoxide levels fell by more than 30%, while fine particulate matter, tiny particles that get deep into the lungs, was down by almost 24%.
