New Jersey to ban ICE cars and trucks from 2035
New Jersey joins a growing list of nine states, including California, Vermont, New York, Washington, and Oregon, to ban gasoline-burning cars – eventually, at least. As of 2027, New Jersey will start limiting the number of gasoline-powered cars, light-duty trucks, and SUVs that can be sold within the state, and eventually ramp that up to a full ban starting 2035.
Governor Phil Murphy and Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette announced yesterday the filing of the Advanced Clean Cars II rule for adoption on December 18, which puts the state on course toward phasing out fossil-fuel burning cars, trucks, and SUVs. California has led the way in pulling back on ICE vehicles, and Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and New Jersey having announced they’ll enforce the Advanced Clean Cars II regulations to scale down to zero-emissions.
The federal government has no ban put in place, but has set the goal of having 50% of new cars sales in the US being electric by 2030. President Biden has budgeted $5 billion to help make that happen.
Similar to ICE bans elsewhere, this of course doesn’t mean it’ll be illegal to own or drive an ICE car but rather prohibits the sale of new or used cars. Of course, die-hard ICE fans can just hop the border and buy them from another state, as long as the vehicles meet emissions standards.
Automobile lobbyists and businesses aren’t too happy, with thousands of letters apparently pouring into the state office asking to pull back on the measure, arguing that it puts a limit on the freedom to drive what you want, or in some cases, limits what people can afford to drive. “This ban of the sale of new gas-powered cars in such an expedited time does not take costs or feasibility into account,” argues Ray Cantor, an official with the New Jersey Business and Industry Association. “It does not take the lack of local and highway infrastructure into account. It does not take grid capacity into account. It ignores consumer choice. It doesn’t take New Jersey residents into account, especially low- and moderate-income families.”
However, environmental groups take a different view. “The electric vehicle revolution is upon us, and the benefits are far-reaching — even for those who never plan to get behind the wheel of an EV. By adopting Advanced Clean Cars II standards, New Jersey is making a commitment to cleaner air, improved public health, and climate change mitigation,” said Kathy Harris, senior clean vehicles and fuels advocate, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). She adds that the state can avoid at least 175 premature deaths from polluted air by 2050, and that the program will bring cost-savings to New Jersey vehicle owners of nearly $60 billion by 2050.
Electrek’s Take
This great news, but why not sooner? The transition to electric is already well underway, and consumers are showing they are ready. But legislation needs to catch up. Still, more states embracing the ban undeniably puts more pressure on the US government to potentially issue a federal ban, similar to the European Union, which has approved a full ban on new gas-powered cars starting 2035. Additionally, moves like this add more pressure to automakers to accelerate EV production. Of course, major automakers are already doing that with firm plans in place to phase out ICE vehicles: GM is targeting 2035, with smaller automakers with quicker timelines, and European automakers are moving to phase out quickly to meet the EU deadline.
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Paris’ bike-share system, Vélib has long been considered one of the shining success stories of urban micromobility. With a massive fleet of over 20,000 pedal and electric-assist bicycles around Paris, the service has helped millions of residents and tourists get around the City of Light without needing a car or scooter. But lately, a growing problem is threatening to knock the wheels off this urban mobility marvel: theft and joyriding.
According to city officials and the service operator, more than 600 Vélib bikes are now going missing every single week. That’s over 30 bikes a day simply vanishing from the system – some stolen outright, others taken on “joy rides” and never returned.
“At the moment we’re missing 3,000 bikes,” explained Sylvain Raifaud, head of the Agemob company that currently operates the Velib system. That’s nearly 15% of over 20,000 Vélib bikes across Paris.
The sticky-fingered culprits aren’t necessarily professional thieves or organized crime rings. Instead, they’re often regular users who treat the shared bikes like disposable toys.
The city estimates that many people have figured out how to pry the bikes out of the system’s parking docks, unlocking one for a casual cruise and then ditching it somewhere far from a docking station.
Once pried free, the bikes are technically usable for the next 24 hours until their automatic locking feature kicks in. At that point, the bikes are often simply abandoned. Some end up in alleyways. Others get tossed in rivers. A few just disappear completely.
And since the bikes are intended to be parked at their many docking stations around the city, they don’t have GPS chips, further complicating recovery of “liberated” bikes.
The issue started small but has grown into more than an inconvenience – it’s beginning to undermine the entire purpose of the service. With bikes going missing at such a high rate, many Vélib docking stations are left empty, especially during rush hours.
Riders looking for a quick commute or a convenient hop across town are increasingly finding themselves without available bikes, or having to walk long distances to find a functioning one.
That kind of unreliability chips away at user confidence and threatens to drive potential riders back into cars, cabs, or other less sustainable forms of transport at a time when Paris has already made great strides to dramatically reduce car usage in the city.
The losses are financially painful, too. Replacing stolen or vandalized bikes isn’t cheap, and the resources spent on tracking down missing equipment or reinforcing anti-theft measures are stretching thin. Vélib has faced theft and vandalism issues before, especially during its early years, but this latest surge has officials sounding the alarm with renewed urgency.
Officials acknowledge that there’s no easy fix. Paris, like many cities with bike-share systems, walks a fine line between accessibility and accountability. Part of what makes Vélib so successful is its ease of use and widespread availability. But those same features make it vulnerable to misuse – especially when enforcement is limited and the consequences for abuse are minimal.
The timing of the problem is especially unfortunate. In recent years, Paris has seen impressive results in reducing car traffic, expanding bike lanes, and promoting cycling as a key part of its sustainable transport strategy. Vélib is a cornerstone of that plan. But if the system becomes too unreliable, it risks losing the very people it was designed to serve.
Meanwhile, as Parisians increasingly find themselves staring at empty docks, the challenge for the city and Vélib will be to restore confidence in the system without making it harder to use. That means striking the right balance between freedom and responsibility, between open access and protection against abuse.
In a city where cycling is supposed to be the future of mobility, losing thousands of bikes to joyriders and sticky fingers isn’t just frustrating; it’s unsustainable.
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