Much of a $68.7 million windfall will benefit only 0.2 percent of the state’s population.

The 0.2 percenters are Coloradans fortunate enough to own electric cars.

The money represents Colorado’s portion of a settlement Volkswagen made with the federal government for equipping cars with “defeat devices” intended to cheat federal emissions tests. The government allocated money to each state based on its number of registered “illegal” Volkswagens.

The money must be used to mitigate pollution, and the EPA suggested “replacing older city transit buses” or installing “charging infrastructure” for electric cars, or buying more efficient locomotives for freight yards. Colorado plans to install charging stations and fund a handful of electric buses in cities with mass transit.

A Sept. 3 Gazette editorial suggested using the money to help widen highways, instead. It suggested Colorado pitch the EPA on road projects because of the substantial reduction in harmful emissions that results from reducing traffic congestion. The article cited credible studies that prove the environmental benefits of unclogging traffic.

“Throughout the Denver Metro area, idling is responsible for an estimated 40,000 tons of harmful air pollution a year and 400,000 tons of CO2 emissions. This results in over 40 million gallons of fuel wasted while idling, costing area residences and businesses over $100 million dollars a year,” states a report by Engines Off! – a collaborative effort of federal, state and local governments working to improve air quality.

Instead of projects to spread the wealth, and clean the air, the money will benefit a special interest.

Of about 1.8 million registered vehicles in Colorado, only 11,238 are electric. Owners make up 0.2 percent of Colorado’s population, while their cars amount to 0.6 percent of traffic on the roads.

Of the state’s electric car owners, 19 percent live in Boulder County – a wealthy enclave that contains only 5.6 percent of Colorado’s population.

El Paso County contains 12 percent of Colorado’s population, and about 0.17 percent of the state’s electric cars.

Low-end electric cars, such as the Smart electric, are approaching $30,000. A Tesla ranges from $94,00 to $140,000. Each buyer receives a $7,500 federal tax subsidy and a $5,000 state subsidy, with or without perks the Volkswagen settlement will fund.

Though we respect mass transit riders, they make up about 2 percent of El Paso County’s population. The percentage only goes down outside the state’s major population centers. That 2 percent or less won’t get more buses – just a few electric replacements.

Electric vehicles might catch on among the masses, at which time the market will respond with charging stations, service facilities and whatever else the owners of these machines require. For now, they are highly subsidized novelty for high-end consumers.

To spend $68.7 million to advance electric vehicles, the expenditure should buy a meaningful reduction in pollution before technology advances or turns in a different direction. Unfortunately, it cannot.

Fossil fuels generate nearly 80 percent of Colorado’s electricity. As such, charging a car burns gas or coal and sends emissions through smoke stacks. That won’t change appreciably for decades.

The Volkswagen settlement provides a welcome windfall for a fortunate few. For everyone else, it is Monopoly money.