Electric Car Chargers Coming to Capitol Hill
Obama has reportedly approved the installation of electric vehicle charging stations in and around Capitol Hill.
Currently, only two US senators are known to own electric cars: Democratic Sen. Carl Levin (Michigan), whom owns a Chevy Volt EREV, and Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander (Tenn), whom owns a Nissan Leaf.
There are an estimated 55,000 electric cars on the roads of America, and that is very short of President Obama’s goal to get 1 million on these roads by 2015.
The US needs “to take steps to ensure the infrastructure exists to make these vehicles desirable and accessible to consumers,” Sen. Carl Levin said in a floor statement after the bill passed.
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Electric vehicle charging infrastructure really is very important to mitigating the issue of range anxiety for electric car owners, concern about not being able to charge their car if they run out of battery power.
If charging stations were ubiquitous and electric vehicles could charge in a few minutes, range anxiety would be a minor issue, because even short-range vehicles could simply recharge whenever necessary instead of stranding their owners.
Shorter range vehicles, with their smaller battery packs, are clearer much cheaper, but for them to proliferate, we need more charging infrastructure.
Levin was supported by Sen. Jeff Merkley (Democratic Senator of Oregon), whose spokeswoman told the Government Executive website: “If we are going to increase the use of electric vehicles across the nation, we need to make sure we have the necessary charging infrastructure.
“Helping encourage more electric vehicles across the country and ensuring we have the necessary infrastructure for an EV future is crucial,” she added.
The location of the stations, as well as when they are to be installed, has not yet been determined.
Source: BusinessGreen
Photo Credit: sunxez
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