I don't think you should call this populism. After all, many consumers will be critical of the measure. In fact it's the opposite - a progressive policy.

And of course all the points you are listing as weaknesses completely ignore the existing negative externalities (such as health impacts from emissions, tire wear and noise, economic dependence, and of course the long-term impact on the environment). So even if your pessimistic takes are correct, we need to compare them to the alternatives to get a sober judgement.