The title of this blog is Are We There Yet? The Pleasure & Pain of EV Ownership. Sometimes the "pain" is more evident than the pleasures.
The two pictures below show where we do most of our driving. We work, shop, play, and visit friends and family mostly in this area, from Everett to Seattle. The first picture shows all of the gas stations (red dots) while the second depicts the EV charging opportunities (green/orange blimps) in our region. When comparing the two, it is easy to think that the electric vehicle folks are trying to install electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE or "chargers") in roughly the same locations and in similar numbers as what the petroleum folks have done with gas stations. Why, then, do we ever worry about running out of electricity in the LEAF?
Over the weekend, we'll be documenting the destinations that we travel to in the LEAF. If there is a chance to plug-in, we'll do it. Afterwards, maybe we'll have some clarity on the whole "range anxiety" phenomena.
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| King/Snohomish County Gas Stations (Google Maps) |
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King/Snohomish County Plug-Ins (PlugShare)
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| Library: No Plug-In |
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| Costco: No Plug-In |
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| Alderwood Mall: Level 1 (120v)=Slow Charging! |
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| Target: No Plug-In |
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Local High School: No Plug-In
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After a couple of days of public charging consciousness, a few things are apparent. One, the public EVSE infrastructure has some ways to go to help make charging on-the-go an afterthought. Two, having a Level 2 (240 volt) EVSE installed at home is currently a must-have. Lastly, not once were we anxious or stressed due to the lack of EVSEs.
With the range of most of the electric vehicles available today, daily driving an EV to work or around town on errands is easily accomplished. If drivers want to use an EV for those 100+ mile outings, that, too, is possible with some planning...and the pain of inconvenience.
UPDATE: We headed down to IKEA today. IKEA arguably has the best EV charging setup that we've used to date. I don't think that there will ever be a Hummer blocking these parking spots like this EV parking space:
UPDATE: We headed down to IKEA today. IKEA arguably has the best EV charging setup that we've used to date. I don't think that there will ever be a Hummer blocking these parking spots like this EV parking space:
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