EV Public Charging...

[MLucas]

...finally, has come to the shores of Buffalo! I thought we were in the dearth of EV public charging since I bought my EV 18 months ago. Last summer, I took my son to the zoo and had to carefully meter out my charge by driving slowly and not using the A/C so that I could make it there and back. Yesterday, on my day off (Family Day in Ontario, Canada and Presidents Day in US) my spouse and I decided to go to the Zoo to get the little one out of the house for the day. Before leaving I decided to check the Public Charging infrastructure and see if there were any new locations. I was surprised to find a Chargepoint at the Chili's across from our US mailbox and a Chargepoint at the Buffalo Zoo. I told the spouse were taking my car, he looked surprised and wondered if this was going to just be one big hassle. After we picked up the mail and drove across the street to the Chili's, I found the charger and tapped my card. It whirred to life and the display said #2 was ready for charging. I plugged in my car and heard the typical relays and fans clicking and whirring away. What a freaking thrill to finally be able to enjoy what you west coast guys have been enjoying. Well, until the reVoltings and the PiPs show up and hog the stations. But, for now its nice to have this here in Buffalo. I hope to see more of these Chargepoints. I made a point to thank the managers at both locations for having the charger available.

 

[danpatgal]

Nice!

It makes using the car so much more relaxing, even just a short break to get 5-10 miles of range on Level 2 can be the difference between using the EV and a gas car.

We've done that a couple times now to Philly or Harrisburg (we're about halfway between), and it's still feels a bit like venturing out without your wallet, but once you get used to it - it's all part of the fun.

 

[Don]

I will be elated when the first public charging station of any kind shows up here in South Mississippi - Nearly 2 years now and more than 15,000 miles and not a nickel's worth of juice from anywhere other than my garage

Still, the complete lack of public charging hasn't really affected the way we thought we would use the car when we bought it, or the way we actually use it in our daily lives . . . . but, it would be nice to be able to drive it to Mobile Alabama or New Orleans once in a while, even though in actuality, we've never gone to either place in an ICE since we bought the car

I *suspect* when the first public charging station *is* finally installed, it will be in the mega shopping complex which is just 3 miles from our home, so even that won't affect us in any way - Why pay to charge there when it's so much cheaper at home?

Don

 

[NeilBlanchard]

We now have two Level 2 charging stations in Maynard - they are apparently free. They are in the municipal parking area downtown.

 

[MLucas]

Where I live is between two large metropolises, Toronto and Buffalo. Toronto is too far to even consider going to with my EV until the Fast Chargers appear along the QEW. Buffalo is close enough to make it there and back but not do much else. The appearance of the ChargePoints in Buffalo now make Buffalo a lot more accessible. That is the way I'm seeing this, is that as these are added my circle of autonomy is growing larger with my EV. I'm just fearing what JoeS and others have said, the reVoltIngs, the Pips and the ICEs showing up and hogging the stations. When I pulled out of Chili's EV parking spot, a Chrysler product was waiting for me so he could take my spot and I watched him in my rear view mirror. He took the spot even though its clearly marked as an EV only spot.

 

[fjpod]

I don't have to worry about anything related to public charging spots...here in NYC. There are none...unless you count the one at the Nissan dealer that is always blocked by parked cars for sale, and the one at the Mitsubishi dealer that was destroyed by Sandy, or the ones in the Pay parking lots of NYC.

...charge at night...snooze.

 

[jray3]

Public charging, or the lack thereof, got MR BEAN his 15 seconds of fame

http://www.king5.com/home/EV-car-charging-network-at-standstill-after-bankruptcy-246649381.html

 

[JoeS]

Hey Jay, good show! Pity that the TV spot snipped out the emphasis that the EV is the PRIMARY car in the family, although the point got made obliquely. I have an old friend who lives in downtown Bellevue who really wants to buy an EV (after he sells his two classic MBZs) - his only criterion is that he can drive to Victoria (second home) using QC. Right now he's haggling with his condo association about the possible use of the 120vac outlet in his garage. Generally speaking, QC in a big city is primarily for people for whom the city is the destination rather than for the residents there.

 

[blackheart]

I'm vacationing in NOLA for the first time - and since I have only had my iMiev a short time, I am now looking everywhere for possible charging options, even if there is no need for me at the moment.
I'm from Portland, OR and it is supposed to be a 'green' city. Before I got my iMiev, I beleive that I could probably park and plug the car in just about anywhere - possibly taking the car to Mt Hood or Hood River or the coast... and while it is possible - I can just take my ICE and not really worry about it - THAT is frustrating. I don't beleive I will be able to cut my 'cord' to opec as quickly as I had hoped.
But, back to NOLA, I really haven't seen any public charge point . IIA sure they are around - but probably hidden.
How are we finally going to push ourselves past the gas to what should be a logical step in transportation if we keep installing charging stations behind everything, hidden in out of the way places where bc you drive an EV and you might want to charge while you shop - you now have the worst possible parking spot?
Again, I'm new to this. But it seems that folks should be proud that they are finally aiding a movement away from oil... mind boggling

 

[Phximiev]

What and where is NOLA?

 

[PV1]

The sad thing is, charging stations almost have to be out of the way so they don't get ICEd.

Right now, our best tool is PlugShare. Mostly community run, but there are admins, free to use, and no requirement to share your home station to use it.

There are mixed views on the future of the charging infrastructure. I believe that 80 amp charging stations should be placed at popular destinations and stores (with more than a handful of stations at each location), with quick chargers found at convenience stops in, around, and in-between cities. Complaints about charge time become irrelevant if you opportunity charge while doing everyday tasks. The stations should have some fee to minimize camping and freeloading, ensuring more stations are available to those that need to charge. Some see the reliance on public charging decreasing with improvements in range, but I see it overall increasing because of the rapid growth in EV adoption we're going to see over the next 5 years. Look at gas cars. They all get better than 300 miles on a tank, yet every gas station in my town is always full of cars gassing up, and there are way more gas stations than charging stations, which are almost always vacant.

NOLA= New Orleans, Louisiana.

 

[wmcbrine]

But, back to NOLA, I really haven't seen any public charge point . IIA sure they are around - but probably hidden.

http://plugshare.com/

There appears to be only one public CHAdeMO station in New Orleans:

http://api.plugshare.com/view/location/44919

but there are over a dozen L2s.

 

[blackheart]

What and where is NOLA?

Sorry - New Orleans Louisiana.
And when I spoke before about taking my ICE, it wasn't just convenience - but cost. Even my full size pick up, at 15mpg is acceptable when you see CHADEMO at $7.50 - $8.00 per session.

 

[JoeS]

...when I spoke before about taking my ICE, it wasn't just convenience - but cost. Even my full size pick up, at 15mpg is acceptable when you see CHADEMO at $7.50 - $8.00 per session.

Ah, but you might consider that to be your contribution to saving the planet. :roll: :mrgreen:

 

[blackheart]

I don't think this is the place for whether or not driving an ICE or not will 'save' the planet.
My decision to finally move away from gas is like 70% economic and 30% political decision. I needed to have a beeter way to get to work. Seeing one option was a newer car, and seeing that imiev's were coming off lease - the dollars seemed to make sense.
Overall, I'd just like to see us move away from an old technology for transportation and use energy sources that are local/regional and no one's kids had to fight and die bc some despot stood in the way of keeping gas under $5/gal...
But we all have our reasons.

 

[Phximiev]

:lol:

https://youtu.be/SQDBpRsZ1vE