Triangle prepares for arrival of electric cars (buying, construction)

[SunnyKayak]

The Triangle is bracing for the arrival of electric cars by adding about
200 public charging stations during the next two years.
The state currently offers fewer than a dozen outlets for public recharging.
Construction is financed largely by federal stimulus funds.

Triangle to be proving ground for electric cars - Technology - NewsObserver.com

[NcerfromNY]

cool! I can almost hear the naysayers now - the same ones who, throw them back a hundred years or so, were all upset about the funds being "squandered" on highways that connected. Amazing that it didn't happen until Eisenhower!

[zinner]

So it will be free to charge your car?

It will be good for commuters, but if it takes 2-4 hours to charge your car it's kind of pointless to put them at a grocery store. Need better tech in this area still.

I wonder how this will affect the power grid, since we always hear story of how outdated it is.

I have been thinking about getting a volt when they come out, but you can buy a lot of gas for the 20k premium I hear they car will cost.

[wheelsup]

Originally Posted by zinner

I have been thinking about getting a volt when they come out, but you can buy a lot of gas for the 20k premium I hear they car will cost.

200,000 miles worth, give or take.

[frankpc]

Originally Posted by zinner

So it will be free to charge your car?

It will be good for commuters, but if it takes 2-4 hours to charge your car it's kind of pointless to put them at a grocery store. Need better tech in this area still.

I wonder how this will affect the power grid, since we always hear story of how outdated it is.

I have been thinking about getting a volt when they come out, but you can buy a lot of gas for the 20k premium I hear they car will cost.

Sticky point ... Power utilities are regulated in NC. So unless you're a utility you can't sell power. The article mentions potential workarounds via a connection fee, etc.

Lots of work being done on smart grid tech too, but I hear you.

Frank

[freshjiv]

Awesome, can't wait. Glad I still drive a 1995 Isuzu Rodeo. I have been holding out waiting b/c I know we are about usher in a whole new era in cars in the next few years, and I wanted to wait till then before getting a new car.

[zinner]

Originally Posted by frankpc

Sticky point ... Power utilities are regulated in NC. So unless you're a utility you can't sell power. The article mentions potential workarounds via a connection fee, etc.

Lots of work being done on smart grid tech too, but I hear you.

Frank

I love how the gov't can just subvert it's own rules.

It simply isn't reasonable to have a regulated industry and then the can just cast it aside under the guise of "oh we will just charge you a fee to us the connector", when it's obvious that you are paying for the electricity. I think they either need to unregulated it or less progress energy build the stations if it see's fit.

I understand that they may not want to do that or it might not be profitable, but it's the laws our gov't has laid down and they need to live by them or change them.

[NM posts]

Wow! Thank you for posting this. I've been interested in the Nissan Leaf. I'm still thinking it would be better as a second car until the infrastructure is everywhere, but this is a great start.

[Crashj007]

Originally Posted by freshjiv

Awesome, can't wait. Glad I still drive a 1995 Isuzu Rodeo. I have been holding out waiting b/c I know we are about usher in a whole new era in cars in the next few years, and I wanted to wait till then before getting a new car.

Hold onto your Izuzu, but don't hold your breath.

[wheelsup]

Originally Posted by freshjiv

Awesome, can't wait. Glad I still drive a 1995 Isuzu Rodeo. I have been holding out waiting b/c I know we are about usher in a whole new era in cars in the next few years, and I wanted to wait till then before getting a new car.

Instead of buying a new car just buy Progress Energy stock. It has a fairly high dividend because the stock prices is deflated due to the economy. I got in around 6.5%, and it pays my electric bill and then some every month. Kinda nice having your electric company pay you to use their product .