Raleigh opens stations for charging electric cars

newsobserver.com ^ | Nov 25, 2010 | RAY MARTIN

[Jet Jaguar]

RALEIGH -- The city introduced two electric-car charging stations Tuesday, the first of many sprouting up across Raleigh as electric and hybrid cars become more common. Officials showcased the recharging stations in front of City Hall on Hargett Street. A third station is scheduled to be installed near the convention center next week.

The plan is for Raleigh to have at least 30 stations by September, most of them downtown in public parking garages or near N.C. State University's Centennial Campus. Those will be part of a bigger wave that will bring more than 350 recharging stations to North Carolina, most of them financed by federal stimulus money.

Raleigh's efforts are part of a partnership the city formed last year with Indianapolis and Portland, Ore. Mayor Charles Meeker said the move will make Raleigh a leader in electric vehicles in the Southeast.

"We're trying to get ahead of this, but also trying to anticipate consumer demand," Meeker said. "There are a lot of people interested in green activities right now, and this is certainly one of them."

The recharging stations, with 9-foot cords, will provide free electricity, though drivers will need to pay the parking meter.

The parking spaces in front of City Hall are not reserved for drivers with electric cars, so anyone will be able to use them for now.

Meeker said the pods are meant for drivers who fully charge their cars at home but want to recharge for an hour or two to get a few extra miles of power while they're downtown.

Raleigh's initial stations are being donated by Eaton Corp., an Ohio-based company with operations throughout the Triangle and the state. They would have cost about $3,000 each had thecity paid for them, said Nelson Daniels, Raleigh's sustainability technician.

Assistant City Manager Julian Prosser said the company's offer to donate its technology helped Eaton's product get selected for the initial rollout.

Auto technology companies are eager to have their products on Raleigh streets by summer, when the city will host the annual electric car conference of the Electric Power Research Institute, a nonprofit, utility-industry think tank.

The Triangle is seen as a future proving ground for electric and hybrid vehicles. NCSU installed a station on its Centennial Campus this year so prospective students can take campus tours in an electric car.

City of Raleigh staffers use 10 hybrid cars for city work, and they expect to get 10 additional electric cars next year.

[Jet Jaguar]

Is it free to charge? They have to pay to park.

[Benchim]

It will close very soon. No one is going to buy a car that goes 40 miles and takes 3 hours to charge!!

[RightGeek]

Meeker said the pods are meant for drivers who fully charge their cars at home but want to recharge for an hour or two to get a few extra miles of power while they're downtown.

Translation: it's pointless

[max americana]

“The recharging stations, with 9-foot cords, will provide free electricity, though drivers will need to pay the parking meter. “

or how long does it take? If it takes me 10 hours to fully charge a car just to drive it 2 miles, what’s the use?

[Army Air Corps]

At least three hours. Also, these golf carts only move emissions elswehere - they are not “zero emission” vehicles.

[tcrlaf]

Why do I have a vision ten years in to the future of these things only being used to plug in Christamas lights?

[goldstategop]

The are developing a long range battery with high mileage but so far the only practical cars are hybrids.

[Army Air Corps]

Raleigh's initial stations are being donated by Eaton Corp., an Ohio-based company with operations throughout the Triangle and the state. They would have cost about $3,000 each had thecity paid for them, said Nelson Daniels, Raleigh's sustainability technician.

So, you were only able to install them because they were free and not because there was a real demand for them.

[max americana]

Have you seen the movie “The Last Chase” with Lee Majors? He had no choice but to bury his sports car because the Feds outlawed gas-powered cars and everyone was stuck with golf-mobiles.

[goldstategop]

Its not like there’s an electric car that does two things to be viable: go fast enough on the road and has a long battery life. Essential with long out of town trips. Otherwise its just a glorified go-kart.

[ltc8k6]

Well, it’s “free” in that the public is paying for it.

Subsidize the cars, the chargers, and the electricity...

[ElayneJ]

The electricity is free? How is this possible, with utility bills “necessarily skyrocketing?”

[Army Air Corps]

Eveyone took public transportation. Also, in that film, California was practically a seperate country and still allowed private, gasoline-powered vehicles.

[Jet Jaguar]

A 9 foot cord on the station in front of city hall. The copper thieves will have easy pickings after dark.

This is the problem with these "free stations"

Nobody has an interest in monitoring them because nobody is invested in if the stations are operational.

It's like a broken "push to activate walk" button at an intersection. Nobody but the city will fix it. It may take months for somebody to report it, then months to have it repaired.

The city does not care. They have to fix it but they have no profit in doing so.

A private company would fix it as soon as the company figured out it's not working and it's not making money for the company.

[rockinqsranch]

“....most of them financed by federal stimulus money.”

There they go again! “FEDERAL STIMULUS MONEY”. SHEESH!

Q. Where’d that money come from?

A. The Federal Stimulus Tree.

[goldstategop]

There’s a third requirement: the battery must be re-charged in ten minutes or less. The last thing people want to do is have to wait overnight to get back to full power again.

[Frantzie]

It’s a coal car right?

Ford’s Fusion/Milan hybrids are 10 times better than the Volt. What a joke.

[Jet Jaguar]

80 electric car charging stations planned in SC
The Item ^ | Nov 22, 2010 | N/A
Posted on November 22, 2010 11:31:35 AM EST by Jet Jaguar

Related article.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2631286/posts

[max americana]

And Calif. was called “Free America”..

[Army Air Corps]

Let's see, the juice is free and these vehicles are let to charge unattended. Yeah, nothing will go wrong here. Punk kids will unplug cars or sever the cables. Homeless folks will try to plug things into the outlets. I foresee some lawsuits involving electrocution.