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Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

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Re: Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

#121

Post by yalph »

greglindahl wrote: post #112
syntaxing wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I didn't. That's why I asked if there was in order to clairfy any points I might of misunderstood. Unfortunately, the biggest transportation changes are done through a federal level particularly through the NHSTA. For instance, the highways system wash deemed foolish by many but we manage to make it a reality through the cooperation in a federal and state level.

Ah. That kind of fake "reply" really wrecks conversation -- you left me wondering if you had misunderstood, when instead you were just grinding your axe.

Are you here to contribute or pick a fight? Looks like you are misunderstanding comments and writing unrelated replies.

Re: Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

#122

Post by rorykoehler »

kasey_junk wrote: post #88
newfocogi wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This situation is when employers providing chargers in company parking will become a notable work benefit.

I commute via public transit, my employer doesn’t offer parking.

I work from home. My employer doesn't have an office in the country i live in.

Re: Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

#123

Post by grecy »

ad_hominem wrote: post #51
saudioger wrote: post #5

The only thing holding back EVs are/were batteries/charging times. Aside from that they're easier to maintain and perform better — on paper they're loads more practical.

That's not the only thing. How about having to drop ~$8K every 6 years to buy all new batteries after the originals have severely degraded. I think battery tech has to improve quite a bit before EVs can truly overcome ICE vehicles in the mainstream.

C'mon, look at the data. That's not even remotely true.

https://electrek.co/2018/07/17/tesla-model-s-holds-up-400000...

Re: Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

#124

Post by aetherson »

stellar678 wrote: post #109
HarryHirsch wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It would be progress if the kids could get their own electric scooter to go to school or soccer training. It would increase their social skills, it can't be good to be dependent on the parents for everything when cooped up in an exurban paradise.

Excellent point! California just passed a bill that won't allow high school or middle school to start earlier than 8:30am because there is reams of research showing that early starts cause worse learning and development outcomes. Lots of people are up in arms because they need their kids' schedule to fit around their work schedule so they can drive them everywhere. Somehow it's just too hard for them to envision sett…

In all fairness, people (rarely) call the cops on parents who let their kids walk around unsupervised, and commonly heap scorn on them as bad parents.

Re: Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

#125

Post by aerodude »

blt wrote: post #47
jimmaswell wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And an electric car owner won't experience being low on charge and filling up in less than one minute, unless battery swapping schemes come to fruition. Dealbreaker to me being stuck charging for hours (or even overnight if I only have 110) if the batteries are low.

but long trips are so rare in most people's lives. perhaps we will start renting gas cars for long trips. similarly, most people own small-ish cars and rent a u-haul when they need to carry big objects.

For the majority of people, a car is a utility item; car buyers tend to price in the worst case scenario when buying a new vehicle. Statistical arguments don't really work in these cases, because even if an EV covers 90% of your use case, if the 10% is critical, the EV isn't an option.

As an example, a tradie who runs their own business might very well rack up enough hours driving that an EV just wouldn't work for them (not to mention the likelihood of carrying tools or towing trailers). Or what happens if you get home late and the street charger is taken?

EVs seem great on the surface, but are they necessarily practical for the average person? I mean, they could be an iPhone moment, but they could also be an Amazon delivery drone moment, too.

Re: Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

#126

Post by Merad »

telchar wrote: post #75
Merad wrote: post #49

I don’t see EVs taking off for average Americans until there’s an exponential increase in charging infrastructure. I live in a place where it would make great sense to have an EV (only commute 12 miles each day), but I can’t charge at home (townhouse) and I’m not aware of any chargers in my immediate area. There’s also the issue of travel, meaning an EV can’t really be your only car or else you need to be prepared to…

I think you're underestimating the Tesla supercharger network. It basically solves both of those problems (if you have a Tesla) and live in the vicinity of one - if you don't live near one then it still solves the second issue. The infrastructure is expanding rapidly, so your "unless" is a fairly safe bet.

According to Tesla's map there are only 12 supercharger stations in my state. That seems be a pretty typical number for most of the US outside of Southern California and a handful of other major areas. That might be enough to support a handful of enthusiasts and early adopters, but it's a drop in the bucket when your goal is to have millions of people using EVs as their primary vehicle.

Re: Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

#127

Post by perl4ever »

astura wrote: post #101
Eric_WVGG wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "I live in an apartment, I can't charge one, on the street" I agree with pretty much everything you said, but I still can't fathom how electric cars are going to make more than a dent in NYC where most cars are stored streetside.

There's no physical reason why there can't be municipal on street charging, even if it's "pay to charge." Think like parking meters. There just needs to be a demand for the initial infrastructure to be built.

I think there is a "physical" reason, or to be exact, a concrete logical reason why it will be difficult. We have X number of gas pumps. If it takes Y times the amount of time to charge a car as pumping fuel, then we need X*Y chargers for everyone to go electric. It's not just a matter of what's convenient, but of multiplying the infrastructure.

Re: Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

#128

Post by perl4ever »

HarryHirsch wrote: post #103
azeotropic wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

America is not the Bay Area. Those short trips are across town to pick up the kids at school or take them to sports or go grocery shopping or other errands. In the snow. Uphill. Both ways. Nobody is going to use a scooter or an e-bike for that. If someone made an electric minivan, sure, that might soak up most of those trips, but for some reason nobody makes one.

It would be progress if the kids could get their own electric scooter to go to school or soccer training. It would increase their social skills, it can't be good to be dependent on the parents for everything when cooped up in an exurban paradise.

Does an electric scooter increase social skills more than a bicycle?

Re: Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

#129

Post by blurbleblurble »

yegle wrote: post #90
zizee wrote: post #45

I think that electric car adoption is going to have similar characteristics to digital cameras. I remember playing with an early digital camera and seeing a poor replacement for film, but with obvious benefits. Back then it was common to hear "serious" photographers pooh-poohing digital, and how it's many drawbacks would mean it would remain niche, and never replace film. It didn't take long and digial cameras improv…

Did government pass laws to force migrating to digital camera back then?

Government is heavily involved in transportation infrastructure. It's not involved the same way in camera infrastructure.

Re: Electric Vehicles’ Day Will Come, and It Might Come Suddenly

#130

Post by perl4ever »

kasey_junk wrote: post #85
bryanlarsen wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're currently eating free cake. Those parking spots cost the city a lot of money directly and indirectly (some estimates say $100 a month).

But I can’t pay $100 a month for an electrified spot so...

My apartment building has a central garage with a place you can charge your car (probably) for free. Unfortunately someone (out of a few hundred) is already using it.
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