A gallon of gasoline currently costs about $2.50 as of December, 2014, and that gallon will take a new Prius about 50 miles, resulting in a fuel cost of $0.05 per mile. A kilogram of hydrogen will cost $3.50-$6, according to research from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). With a range of approximately 60 miles per kilo of hydrogen, the fuel cost of a first generation fuel cell powered vehicle will be $0.06 - $0.10 per mile.

Considering gasoline prices are as low as they've been in years, and considering that future versions of fuel cell powered vehicles (and refueling infrastructure) will likely be less costly, the notion that hydrogen is "too expensive" compared to gasoline is poorly reckoned (at best). This argument assumes the very best about future gasoline pricing and the very worst about future hydrogen pricing. Odds are, fuel cells vehicles will be no more expensive to operate than gas-powered vehicles and perhaps quite a bit less.