<p>The transportation sector is one of the most relevant sectors which has direct and indirect effects on the environment. Over 70% of emissions come from only road transport. Recognizing the imminent hazards posed by carbon emissions and the finite availability of oil, "sustainable transportation" concept has gained prominence. The review is concerned about achieving three goals. The first goal highlights the need to transfer from using internal combustion engine (ICE) cars to electric vehicles (EVs) especially in public transportation. The goal leads us to present the status of using EV in certain developing Arab countries (Egypt, Morocco, and Jordan). The second goal indicates the tremendous investments aiming to install the production of EVs. The third goal aims to stand on some initiatives in these countries despite all difficulties related to various economical and socio-cultural factors. The review is conducted by a systematic literature search targeting a variety of databases and journals. The search includes Elsevier’s ScienceDirect, SpringerLink, Taylor&amp; Francis and Wiley database to provide a comprehensive overview. Keywords such as electric vehicles, sustainable transportation, economic analysis, GHG emission focusing on the case of Egypt, Morocco, and Jordan govern the search process to ensure the data collected from the included references. The search process also captured information from industry reports, technology news websites published within the last decade and the vision of UN organizations that support the initiatives taken to control and cure the environment.</p> Graphical abstract <p></p>