The plan is partly aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions,with the transport sector one of the steadily growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions.
In the year to September 2018,such emissions were about 19 per cent of national carbon pollution at just over 100 million tonnes - roughly equal second along with stationary energy and trailing only the electricity sector,government data shows.
"Cleaner cars and transport aren’t just good for the environment – they are cheaper to run,"Labor said.
"But Australia lags behind our competitor countries,whether it’s in electric vehicle take-up,or vehicle fuel efficiency,"the statement said."We’re at risk of being left behind."
Behyad Jafari,chief executive of the Electric Vehicle Council which worked with Labor on the plan,said EV sales in Australia totalled 2216 last year,or about one in 500 cars sold. That proportion,about 0.2 per cent,was less than a 10th of the global average of 2.4 per cent -with Norway approaching half of all new sales.
Labor's policy marks"the step-change Australia has long been waiting for,"Mr Jafari said.