Could zero-emission cars have finally found the highway entrance toward prominence? According to a report from PC Magazine, governors of eight different states signed an agreement this week that would support and promote the widespread use of electric cars and other energy-efficient, low-emission vehicles.

The plan for the eight states now involved in the low-emission agreement – a list that includes California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Vermont – details the addition of electric car facilities, as well tax breaks meant to facilitate a greater use of electric vehicles. The PC Magazine article claims that the eight governors hope to have 3.3 million zero-emissions vehicles on their state roads in a decade’s time. Whether the eight-state coalition will try to recruit other states to join the agreement remains to be seen.

Why 2023? For one thing, the governors have a lot of work to do on each of their states to make sure that widespread electric car use is even a viable option. That includes changes in building codes and alterations in tax write-offs and other financial perks that would encourage long time gasoline drivers to make the leap to the electric market.

At this point, car models are certainly available to make electric vehicles more popular than ever before – the eight state governors claim that there are currently 16 zero-emission cars on the market, and the number is growing – but state legislature and development hasn’t quite caught up yet. More electric car charging stations, for instance, need to be added to fueling stations along highways and in other high-traffic areas, while states may even begin offering discounts on electricity for families who have a car charging station attached to their own home.

Still, the charging stations are going to be a big economic deterrent to making electric cars a viable and popular option, and ultimately, they are also the reason that the state governors involved in the zero-emission coalition have built their plan for the long term.

Currently, there are less than 7,000 public charging stations scattered throughout the United States. As companies like Tesla Motors – whose zero-emission Model S sedan is also one of the safest cars on the road – expand their product offerings, electric cars are becoming more popular. As electric car demand rises for luxury vehicles like the Model S, so too does the supply of electric vehicles from other car companies. In turn, the prevalence of electric charging stations should grow substantially over the next 10 years. For now, however, zero-emission cars remain in their relative infancy.