5 ms·

I think it wouldn't even take one. The majority of car use is within the range of the mid-range EVs (150-250 km). Charging can mostly take place at night and

I think it wouldn't even take one. The majority of car use is within the range of the mid-range EVs (150-250 km). Charging can mostly take place at night and some localities even have cheaper utility bills for night-time use. EVs already make economic sense because of 1. and 2.

oblio 10y ago
Quick question: I live in a city with a density of >1000 people / km2. Where will I charge my car?
- Retric 10y ago
  Adding basic overnight car chargers is about as complex as installing lighting. Fast charging is much more complex and costly, but a 1 to 2cent / kWh fee can pay for that infrastructure fairly quickly and it still ends up much cheaper than gas.
  - sangnoir 10y ago
    > Adding basic overnight car chargers is about as complex as installing lighting. Adding the chargers where?
    - zo1 10y ago
      Into your own house/garage. It's fundamentally different to an engine that requires a fuel. I.e. the last-mile delivery is not that different to a centralized one, so you don't need to go to a central location to re-fuel/recharge, you just do it at home.
      - majewsky 10y ago
        You're assuming that you have an own house/garage. If I had a car, I could only park it at the streetside near my apartment.
    - manicdee 10y ago
      Same place you park your car for 8 or more hours a day.
      - oblio 10y ago
        Who's going to pay for that? Who's going to get approval? How are you going to keep track of who used the power supply and then charge them?
        agumonkey 10y ago
        Airport added EV parking spots with a credit card paying terminal. Seems fairly possible to do the same for other parking spots unless it's a special electric line (Volts, Amps).
        oblio 10y ago
        But that would mean thet every parking spot would have its own POS. Or that superchargers would be at least as common as gas stations. I'm not saying it's impossible, just that people are grossly underestimating the costs and the time to build the infrastructure. And let's not even go into developing countries. In Bucharest people barely have a parking spot (legal or not), many park on the sidewalk. Mass electric vehicle usage is at least 10 years into the future in developed countries and probably 20+ in developing ones.
        agumonkey 10y ago
        I agree that spread of infrastructure isn't free, but it's not a "problem" per se. Parking lots already have POS modules for payments, these companies might collaborate to extend support for electric outlet. And of course I think we're all discussing this in market ready countries, not those with more ad-hoc road infrastructure.
        colanderman 10y ago
        The past two cities I've lived in – in the east coast US – have had lots of dirt roads, and narrow one-way streets with no room for a sidewalk let alone recharging stations every 30 feet. So is your claim that the US isn't "market ready"?
    - r00fus 10y ago
      I'm assuming you live in an apartment? Because if you own a house with a garage it's either easy or already exists (110/120v plug)
      - colanderman 10y ago
        Own? A house? With a garage?? In my city (Boston), such a thing would be a sign of very great wealth. The only neighborhood I can think of with such things is the residence of senators and sports stars. And if you find a "garage" attached to a detached dwelling anywhere else in the city, it's either a dilapidated shack or a hole dug out of the side of a cliff.
        sammydavis 10y ago
        charge on the street? There are hundreds of public chargers in seattle. the ski areas even have 2+ chargers. However, that's not enough. We would need more chargers than that. Whistler ski area has several dozen chargers (even the public parking has plug-in 220v and j1772 chargers). But still, a major metropolis like boston needs more. They will come with more demand.
        colanderman 10y ago
        Like I said in another comment, there is barely enough room on the sidewalk for signage on the street where I park my car, let alone chargers every 30 ft. The only place they can reasonably fit are on commercialized streets where residents don't park anyway because it's metered during the day. Again, I don't see mass adoption of EVs in dense cities like Boston (Seattle is only 6.7k/mi²; Boston is 13k) happening until you have fast chargers at refueling stations. We don't have garages, we don't have sidewalk space on residential streets, and we don't drive to work (or if we do, it's not to a place with a commercial garage). The exceptions are (1) luxury high-rises, which generally have private garages, and (2) the very wealthy, who either own their own garage, or drive to work and park in a garage, or both.
        sammydavis 10y ago

oblio 10y ago

Quick question: I live in a city with a density of >1000 people / km2. Where will I charge my car?

Retric 10y ago
Adding basic overnight car chargers is about as complex as installing lighting. Fast charging is much more complex and costly, but a 1 to 2cent / kWh fee can pay for that infrastructure fairly quickly and it still ends up much cheaper than gas.
- sangnoir 10y ago
  > Adding basic overnight car chargers is about as complex as installing lighting. Adding the chargers where?
  - zo1 10y ago
    Into your own house/garage. It's fundamentally different to an engine that requires a fuel. I.e. the last-mile delivery is not that different to a centralized one, so you don't need to go to a central location to re-fuel/recharge, you just do it at home.
    - majewsky 10y ago
      You're assuming that you have an own house/garage. If I had a car, I could only park it at the streetside near my apartment.
  - manicdee 10y ago
    Same place you park your car for 8 or more hours a day.
    - oblio 10y ago
      Who's going to pay for that? Who's going to get approval? How are you going to keep track of who used the power supply and then charge them?
      - agumonkey 10y ago
        Airport added EV parking spots with a credit card paying terminal. Seems fairly possible to do the same for other parking spots unless it's a special electric line (Volts, Amps).
        oblio 10y ago
        But that would mean thet every parking spot would have its own POS. Or that superchargers would be at least as common as gas stations. I'm not saying it's impossible, just that people are grossly underestimating the costs and the time to build the infrastructure. And let's not even go into developing countries. In Bucharest people barely have a parking spot (legal or not), many park on the sidewalk. Mass electric vehicle usage is at least 10 years into the future in developed countries and probably 20+ in developing ones.
        agumonkey 10y ago
        I agree that spread of infrastructure isn't free, but it's not a "problem" per se. Parking lots already have POS modules for payments, these companies might collaborate to extend support for electric outlet. And of course I think we're all discussing this in market ready countries, not those with more ad-hoc road infrastructure.
        colanderman 10y ago
        The past two cities I've lived in – in the east coast US – have had lots of dirt roads, and narrow one-way streets with no room for a sidewalk let alone recharging stations every 30 feet. So is your claim that the US isn't "market ready"?
  - r00fus 10y ago
    I'm assuming you live in an apartment? Because if you own a house with a garage it's either easy or already exists (110/120v plug)
    - colanderman 10y ago
      Own? A house? With a garage?? In my city (Boston), such a thing would be a sign of very great wealth. The only neighborhood I can think of with such things is the residence of senators and sports stars. And if you find a "garage" attached to a detached dwelling anywhere else in the city, it's either a dilapidated shack or a hole dug out of the side of a cliff.
      - sammydavis 10y ago
        charge on the street? There are hundreds of public chargers in seattle. the ski areas even have 2+ chargers. However, that's not enough. We would need more chargers than that. Whistler ski area has several dozen chargers (even the public parking has plug-in 220v and j1772 chargers). But still, a major metropolis like boston needs more. They will come with more demand.
        colanderman 10y ago
        Like I said in another comment, there is barely enough room on the sidewalk for signage on the street where I park my car, let alone chargers every 30 ft. The only place they can reasonably fit are on commercialized streets where residents don't park anyway because it's metered during the day. Again, I don't see mass adoption of EVs in dense cities like Boston (Seattle is only 6.7k/mi²; Boston is 13k) happening until you have fast chargers at refueling stations. We don't have garages, we don't have sidewalk space on residential streets, and we don't drive to work (or if we do, it's not to a place with a commercial garage). The exceptions are (1) luxury high-rises, which generally have private garages, and (2) the very wealthy, who either own their own garage, or drive to work and park in a garage, or both.
        sammydavis 10y ago