A new study from Juniper Research (www.juniperresearch.com) forecasts that nearly 17 million hybrid and electric vehicles will be on the road by 2020, up from an estimated 12 million last year.

The research group believes that stakeholders primarily need to establish the viability and desirability of electric vehicles with consumers, and adopt an aggressive ‘go to market’ strategy that includes:

° The rolling out of a wide-scale public charging infrastructure – that is seen as both ongoing and committed.

° Conducting effective consumer education campaigns, with attractive incentives to change.

The new research found that electric car manufacturers are prioritizing ‘range’ as the key issue. Original equipment manufacturers, such as Tesla and Chevrolet understand that “range anxiety” is the greatest hindrance to the adoption of electric vehicles. In order to meet the expectations of the combustion engine vehicle market, Tesla and Chevrolet have focused their efforts towards ensuring that their models’ mileage range can exceed 200 miles on a fully charged vehicle.

Juniper Research ranked the top five electric vehicle manufacturers, scoring them on five key factors: Vehicle range (EPA rated mileage (Environmental Protection Agency); vehicle sales; infrastructure implementation; time spent in development and deployment; future plans and innovation. The top ranked manufacturers were Tesla, BMW, Nissan, Chevrolet, and Ford.