Easy Electric Car Charging Infrastructure

Great idea. However I have no access to a charging station at home. I live in an apartment building with 12 apartments, as are all the buildings are in the complex. There are 8 parking spots in front of said building one of which it designated handicapped. There are 7 handicapped drivers 3 of whom are senior citizens, 2 with walkers. There are 17 cars belonging to the occupants of the building. Where are we supposed to plug in a vehicle without a parking space other then a common area not near the building?

I'm all for an electric car, there are days, even weeks when don't go out. Do they hold a charge?

This idea makes great sense for many areas of the country. Especially less populated areas where people generally drive longer distances in their daily life and need to charge more often

I think the realities of driving an EV are much different than what most non owners think. People I know charge as often as they would have gotten gas. I’m not looking for chargers on a daily or weekly basis. Many cars have have long range capabilities. I get just shy of 300 miles on an 80 percent charge - optimal charge for battery life. I charge about every three weeks. I can charge at home overnight (a few hours) or at a public level 2 charger. My car takes about 20 minutes (from 20 to 80percent) on a level 2 charger.

There is a public charger I use (because it’s free to me) that has network issues and I have come across non working chargers but there are always others available. But I can see where it would be an issue in areas with less chargers.

My biggest issue (for lack of a better word) with public chargers is knowing how long the cars on the chargers will be and waiting etiquette since you wait in parking spots rather than lines like at a gas station. These have been non issues because there seems to be a sense of community amongst Ev drivers at the chargers and everyone helps each other out.

Why is a second battery needed? It’s a lot of weight added to the vehicle and with extended ranges and rapid charging capabilities it really isn’t necessary im most areas.

Respectfully - in many newer evs these aren’t really issues. My EV’s range is 60 miles more than my gas car was. My car takes 20 minutes to charge at a level 2 charger. Charging at work is often less per kw hour than home rates. Backwoods - unless I’m driving over 250 miles into the backwoods I’m good.

I didn’t get a home charger for three months because it wasn’t necessary A 20 minute charge on a public charger and I’m good for 280 plus miles.

I had many of these concerns before I got my car - it’s a thing called range anxiety. After having my car about a week I realized there was no need for my range anxiety.

I am kind of with Zee on this.  I would go hybrid but am hesitant about totally electrical until we have a much better infrastructure in place.  What is going to happen in all these places that already have electrical grid problems, brown outs, etc because of extreme heat, cold, or natural disasters if they had millions of cars trying to charge too?  I also think that we need to think about what we are going to do with the disposal of all these batteries.  So while I think they are a great idea, I think we need to put the horse before the cart and figure out infrastructure and logistics some before requiring cars to be all electric.  

doe some, the app just gives you a lower price. For others you have to pay through the app.
And different chargers are owned by different companies, so it is multiple apps

I’m another kicking and screaming. I love my Dodge Charger that is no longer going to be made. I hope another another before they’re no more that will carry my into the next 15 years. Mine has 180k on it. This is the last year they are making them. 😢

I drive rural almost exclusively. My car gets 550 miles per tank. I fill more than once a week. My daily route yesterday was over 300 miles and I don’t have time to stop off for a bit and charge my car. I cannot charge it at school, they will not allow it. The cars that can go 300 miles are way more than I can afford.

But, let’s all ohhh and ahhh over the car they tested….. my dream car… A Lucid. I do actually love them. They are beautiful cars. There’s one I drool over every morning as it passes me.

I’m not aware of any state that has required that all cars be electric - only that all new cars be electric. Those who prefer an internal combustion engine can keep driving their old car. This natural phase in/out will allow for infrastructure to be built to support charging.

FWIW, I have driven remote places in my life where there was literally no gas station for a hundred miles on the direction I was going. Far northeastern Colorado into the Nebraska panhandle comes to mind. On one memorable occasion, we coasted into the only gas station in the middle of the Kansas turnpike (hundreds of miles) literally running on fumes. So the need to refuel and the possibility of running out of fuel/power isn’t limited to electric cars.

Two batteries would be HEAVY! Currently EV cars, even the lightest ones, weight more than many cars. A light electric car can weight 20% more than a traditional SUV. I also think having more batteries is not a solution at this time. The pollution and environmental harm from Lithium mining is something that needs to be addressed. It's not in our backyard, so it often isn't associated with EV, but it should be. Labor standards for those mining the lithium are weak, so it causes great harm to them also.
Then what happens to these EV batteries after they no longer hold a charge? Recycle? Hopefully, but that isn't a given.
I know technology will bring things along, but EV isn't the environmental savior at the moment.

It would require an alternator to charge the battery, but the alternator requires more energy than it can generate to charge the battery.

Again - technology may solve some of these issues. Trains are evolving in how they charge themselves, so hopefully new knowledge will come with time.

My current vehicle has over a 700 mile range. I just drove a little over 600 miles yesterday and I have just under 1/4 tank left in my truck. The EV equivalent with the high range battery would go 320 miles. If I had a load or was towing, that electric range drops significantly. If it is cold, and I do live in a cold climate - it goes to unusable range.

I don't know how tractors and large trucks would work for farms. The need for a tractor to run 18 to 24 hours a day is normal. During busy seasons a 15 hour day is normal, if not a little short. We have had to power generators that had our tractor running for over 14 DAYS without ever powering down.

Because in CA at least, they are not looking at selling hybrids anymore- just EV.

I like to drive FAST.  😂

I think that you are smart to have a gas car and an electric car.  I never have "extra time" when doing things.  I have to get there and get it done and taken care of.  At this point in my life there aren't many leisurely journeys.  We do combine trips as much as possible to limit our miles driven since gas is almost $5/gallon right now here.

We have 2 EVs and have had them since 2016. I have never had an issue with charging. We drove from CO to CA this summer and it was great. We had 4 kids and 2 dogs with us. We had to stop every 2-3 hours to charge. It was just enough time for everyone (humans and dogs) to go to the bathroom, grab a snack or drink if needed, and stretch our legs. I never had any issues with having to wait for a charging spot, we have unlimited supercharging on ours so it was free to charge. We never had trouble finding a hotel/bathroom/food near a charger. We have a Suburban as a "backup" vehicle (drove it to Mexico). But 99.9% of the time we drive the EVs. I have never "run out" of charge. We love our cars and I don't plan to ever buy another gas vehicle again.