During the summer of $5 gas, it was perhaps no surprise that many consumers across the country were trading combustion for electricity. According to a TIME article from May, a whopping 53 percent of active automotive shoppers were “considering a more fuel-efficient vehicle in response to high gas prices.”

The electric surge has been building in northern Michigan for several years, but certainly crested a new wave this summer. From the roads to the lakes to the non-motorized pathways, it’s gotten easier to spot electric cars, boats, or bikes throughout the region as of late. And while electricity costs are seeing their own spikes, there’s reason to believe that the “all electric, all the time” trend isn’t going away.

In this week's Northern Express, sister publication of The Ticker, writer Craig Manning explores the growing demand across the region for electric cars, as well as anticipated coming boom in electric boat sales. Even bigger is the electric bike market: In 2021 alone, U.S. consumers purchased 880,000 e-bikes. Find out more in the Northern Express, available to read online and for free on newsstands at nearly 700 spots in 14 counties across northern Michigan.