Ask yourself how practical your gasoline-powered vehicle would be if you could only refuel it between 7:00 PM and 7:00 AM. It doesn't make it a useless vehicle, but losing that flexibility adds a complication to the refueling process that makes the vehicle a lot less attractive to you as a motorist.
I have said all along that EVs will not be accepted for widespread use unless motorists have confidence that they'll be able to recharge their batteries not only at home, but at these types of places in particular: (1) where they work, (2) where they shop, and (3) where they travel for entertainment. This isn't just a grid capacity problem. It's a charging infrastructure problem.
I've posted this before and it's something 'lectric car lovers seem to ignore...
EV's, a great idea for a place like Lichtenstein or Vatican City, but not such a great idea for getting lettuce from California to Maine and then lobsters on the rebound trip.
EV's ca.1900 were getting 100 miles per charge. And now 300 miles per charge is considered great. What a quantum leap!!!!
Your comments are interesting, but have you considered that the routine charging of an electric vehicle is fundamentally different from filling a gas tank? The latter can only be done at a gas station, and you would usually do that only once a week when the tank is nearing empty, whereas you would typically top off your EV battery at home every night. Each morning, you leave home with the equivalent of a full tank in your EV, without the need to stop at a gas station at work or when shopping. Of course, long distance trips are an exception, but I would guess that most people travel between 30 and 60 miles a day on average, and they could bring their batteries to full overnight.
the vehicle a lot less attractive to you as a motorist.
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That’s the idea - force people into mass transit, rail, trolley, bus, etc. Long held liberal dream. Is perhaps why the “infrastructure” bill includes billions for mass transit?
Don’t forget time-to-refuel. I can fill my tank in 10 minutes. For the car I drive that’s 360 combined miles. Try that with an electric vehicle, especially in a northern winter.
“assurance they’ll be able to recharge their EV anywhere and at any time before they’ll even consider buying an EV for everyday use.”
That’s a good point, but if everyone charges over night that will give a few hundred miles of range. What percent of vehicles travel several hundred miles on a given day? It’s a pretty small percent. That’s where some extra generation capacity is needed.
For the California power strain they had in June, they asked people not to charge their cars between 5 and 10 PM, and that was with the low number of electric cars they have now. I’d love it if they could get them to where they can be ubiquitous, and we’re getting closer, but even without the power grid issues and the long-haul driving issues, we’re not there yet.