Tax breaks have a very real impact on the proliferation of technology and deployment of capital. I agree they are useful and the demand goes accordingly but why subsidize something that we as civilization want to move away from?
They can have an impact, just as not punching someone in the face can have a positive impact on them. I just wouldn't call it a subsidy when you're not taking someone's money.
Regulations / taxes have an impact. The proliferation of SUVs has entire to do with regulation.
It's easier to meet emission standards for a "light truck" (actual category of a SUV) so car manufacturers are pumping out vehicles with a similar size / front grill angle / etc so that the vehicle is under that category. You might argue that people have a preference for SUVs over Sedans but also note how similar all the SUVs appear; the appearance is part of the light truck designation so even if consumer preference drove a larger car design, the regulation has driven its appearance.
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That said, I think an additional gas tax that rose annually with the proceeds rebated on your tax return is one of the easy + effective solutions I've heard about. Doesn't apply repressively because at the end of the year they get the higher costs rebated but at the time of sale pushes people to buy non-petroleum alternatives as it's cheaper. Probably easier to just rebated it equally amoungst tax filers as opposed to a rebate and industrial use is going to dwarf consumer use so you'll personally still end out ahead.
