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Electric Vehicle Charging
by Doug Lord
Two years ago, we bought a 2023 Chevrolet Bolt. It’s an all-electric car (EV), as opposed to a hybrid that also uses gas. After driving around Eugene for around 2 years, with one trip to Portland, we decided to take a longer trip to Northern California. This was way beyond the range of our car’s battery and required using charging stations.
Usually, we charge in our garage at night, using the cable that comes with the Bolt, which works with both 110 and 220 household current. The 220 takes about 7 hours for a full charge, the 110 takes days. Our battery is supposed to have 259 miles of range when fully charged, but generally it won’t go above 240. This limitation gives rise to range anxiety, a common malady among EV drivers. This condition is manageable while driving near home but can be serious when on long trips. The cure on those trips is careful advance planning, which can be done using the phone.
There are many apps available, and my favorites for the California trip were PlugShare, which directs you to charging stations along the route regardless of the make (there are many providers of stations), and Electrify America (EA), a provider which is prevalent along I5 corridor. So, first I went to PlugShare and created a “trip,” which involves looking at a map and selecting stations along the route. Most of these on the CA route are run by EA and are located at large retailers like Walmart and Fred Meyer.
On this trip, we successfully used stations in Ashland, OR, Redding and Roseville, CA. The EA app tells you if any of their terminals is available, and if it is, you just remove the pump cable, plug it in your car, and you get fast charging. In our Bolt, which is relatively slow, it took more than an hour to charge up each time - time you can use to take advantage of the Walmart bathroom and for eating lunch.
In all, we had good luck. We usually found an available charger at our planned locations, and it didn’t rain on us. The good news is that there’s lots of money in the Federal Infrastructure bill for more stations, and the newer cars have more range and are faster charging.
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1 comment:
Pam and I haven't owned a car for 16 years. We are fortunate, of course, living in Chicago with its legacy of public transportation. I generally ride my bike or take a bus or train. When a longer trip is required, I rent a car, usually the "mystery car" which means for a lower price if I agree to take whatever vehicle is available. A couple of months ago I went on a day trip to visit my cousins who've recently moved from Oklahoma to downstate Illinois. When I went to collect my rental car, I was offered an electric vehicle or a monster gas-guzzling pick-up truck. I've always believed in learning by doing so I took the EV (which as a first time experience for me) and journeyed forth. As I expected, its range was such that the car would require re-charging somewhere on trip. The integrated app on the dashboard provided information about the nearest recharging stations as I drove down the Interstate. Sorta. Since I had never driven an EV before, I wasn't sure about exactly what I needed to do at a charging station. I spent about 30 minutes at the first station I found, which had only a single charger, attempting to make it work. Finally, I called the phone number listed at the station and discovered it was no longer functional. The app on the dashboard indicated that the next closest charging station was in a small town about 15 miles away. I sent another half hour driving around that town looking for it to no avail. So, I headed up the road again convinced that I would surely find a place to recharge in Joliet, which I did in a Walmart parking lot. Bottomline: there is a learning curve and it does take planning. Little by little, recharging infastructure is expanding, as Doug writes, but driving an EV in America today does require dedication at the cost of casual convenience. In light of trying to "save the planet," it's worth the effort!
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