Plug-In Road Rage: It begins

It could be implemented in a number of ways. I suspect the type of parking spaces would determine the best method.

You could us a modified parking meter. The spots cost money to simply park. When the meter is fed, it also unlocks the EVSE. Heck, this way you could even offer free charging by having the credit card reimbursed if the car is charged.

I am sure there are many ways to arrange the logistics.

This, to me, seems to require the least amount of new laws, regulations, etc yet would solve a number of charging problems. In addition, the laws and regulations I have seen so far would likely need to be changed, possibly multiple times, as the supply and demand for charging plugin vehicles and number of public chargers.

This would not require such changes.

 

I think ICE vehicles still should ticketed. They have no plausible reason for being there. Plugin cars parked without being plugged in should get get a lesser ticket since they might be unplugged by someone and not intensionally using it as just a privileged parking space.

Vehicles that were plugged in and charging should pay a fee based primarily on the kWh consumed and then pay a "parking fee" after the vehicle stops charging but remains plugged in. This fee can be automatically collected by ChargePoint or some equivalent system. People parked without being plugged in will hopefully be the exception and will be ticketed by traffic cops.

 

+1

If you are putting a new charger in without existing wiring, it doesn't cost much more for a L2 version, which should have 120VAC outlets too. If there is old wiring sure add a 120 VAC outlet, its cheap. Even the smallest battery phev the prius phv can charge at 3.3 kw, why make a spot where a leaf or volt or tesla can't charge at a decent rate. 2 hours at 12 amps 120VAC only is 2.88 kwh probably 2.4kwh in a battery which at 100 mpge only is 7 miles. It doesn't make much sense with the variety of cars out there to restrict it to that low.

If I had a business I would not charge, it doesn't cost much. For the public chargers here they are unlimited 6 months for $30 or $2/hr. It keeps those cars that never need them from hogging the spaces, but makes them available. WE all pay for them in our electric bill, but this is a very low charge. California is a different matter. There are a lot of dicks that live there that happen to buy plug-ins. That prius driver that keyed the volt is not likely to be his first act of vandalism. People like to blow these things out of proportion and forget about all the A$$hole behavior from people that drive non-plug-ins.

 

A$$whole behavior also shows up with TDI ownership. I've forgotten how many times I couldn't access the diesel pump because a gasser (who could have gone to several gas only islands) would block the only one.

 

A diesel pump is also a gas pump. You cannot complain and call the guy gassing up an A$$. He has just the same right as you to use the pump.
You just have to wait just like when any gas pump is occupied.
Another new Diesel Anxiety is born.

 

Who said the diesel pump was a gas pump too? It's not.

 

Those examples are true, but might not apply here. When you pay more for the HOV lane or an espresso, you are getting 'something'. In the case of the HOV lane, it is presumably a shorter commute, and with the drink, it is presumably better tasting/has more ingredients you like/want/need. Not quite sure what paying extra for EV vs ICE gives you...definitely nothing tangible except "bragging rights" that you did so, but who does? Would anyone walk in the door upon arriving home and announce "Honey, I just made my commute in EV instead of ICE!"? I would personally be ashamed to make such a claim, knowing that by unnecessarily hogging the EVSE for x hours, I might have really screwed up the daily schedule of a pure EV driver.
I mean bragging rights usually come just from owning the car; no one besides you really know the ratio of fuels used.

No, workplace electricity is not a right...but it could possibly me made into one. The benefits are huge. The ability to provide L1 charging throughout the day would dramatically lower -by up to 50%- the amount of batteries EVs/PHEVs need to lug around to achieve a given range......thus lowering their cost, and speeding up their rate of adoption.
Now you personally may have never met anyone who commutes beyond the battery range of their EV, but you are forgetting extenuating circumstances that affect EVs far differently than PHEVs. What if the EV driver normally has a comfortable commute in and out, but that morning, he/she was stuck in super long traffic in extreme heat or cold, and all their range was depleted? They'll need workplace charging to get home with a safe margin.
- If a PHEV doesn't use electricity, they simply lose some self-satisfaction and maybe a few pennies
- If an EV doesn't use electricity, it could mean getting home hours late, a tow truck, a taxi, missing a kid's recital or game, missing a flight, leaving later (when traffic is worse)..... the list of disasters is long

I have no doubt that there will be more PHEVs of varying ranges in the coming years, but we have to look at volume. The highest volume versions of a vehicle tend to be the lowest-priced, and any price additions for fuel-saving features usually demand a 'reasonable' pay-back from the average consumer.
For this reason, an EcoBoost Ford Fusion will outsell Fusion Hybrid, which will outsell Fusion Energi, which would outsell Fusion EV, if there were one.
So, any given consumer will usually go for the cheapest way to achieve a target mpg, and that means that we are likely see much larger numbers of sub-10kwh PHEVs in the coming decades than we are to see 10 kwh+ PHEVs and EVs (but to your point, the number of those 10 kwh+ PHEVs will increase with more and more models available, IMHO, they'll be far outnumbered by sub-10 kwh PHEVs

 

Sorry, but that sounds like material from the "range anxiety" campaign... a selling point Leaf owners didn't buy into. Are you saying a new demograph is being reached out to that would actually purchase with the possibly of getting stranded? If so, that growth will raise new issues. There won't be enough charging stations for them anyway.

 

As I said, I've never seen any public charging stations where there's a loop for a padlock on the J1772 handles. My experience has primarily been w/Chargepoint and Clipper Creek public EVSEs.

My Nissan Leaf Forum • View topic - Copper wire thieves has reports of copper thieves of cables being cut and stolen. I've also seen such reports on the Seattle area and/or SF Bay Area Leaf Facebook groups.

My Nissan Leaf Forum • View topic - Good deal on OEM Nissan 'Emergency' EVSE? is a report of someone getting their L1 EVSE stolen by a thief breaking into their car.

As for plug being locked, the '13 Leaf added a locking feature on the car side. It has 3 positions, auto (unlocks when the car is done charging), middle/nothing (always unlocked), lock (stays locked even if the car's done charging). Unfortunately, the latch appears to be plastic or nylon, so someone determined could still forcibly remove it and break the mechanism.

 

It is unfortunate that basically every EV/PHEV maker has done something different in terms of providing charging status. I've seen PiPs charging and seen the yellow light near the inlet.

My Nissan Leaf Forum • View topic - How to quickly glance connected car to see if charging done has a guide but doesn't include the Fiat 500e yet. I've seen a single 1 charging at work, and from what I've observed, it looks like it behaves similar to the Leaf's except they have 5 lights representing state of charge, instead of just 3.

 

No, that's not what I was saying. Did you read the rest: i clearly stated that even a LEAF, for example, with a 50-mile round-trip is "safe" on most days, except the one where their morning commute meant getting stuck in 10mph bumper-to-bumper traffic with a windchill of 20 below.
That is the case where access to the plug @ work matters and has real consequences.

 

If the owner or prospective owner knows these conditions do or will exist at some point, then they should not use or have the Leaf as their sole vehicle. I would not risk driving without enough gas between stations and my employer does not provide me with free gas just in case.

 

I thought that was already accounted for in the purchase decision... since what you described as extreme is what we here in Minnesota face routinely. In fact, this year it's been quite common.

Sounds like location may be a barrier from getting a standard agreed upon.

 

The Spark EV only has a 3.3 kW OBC. The '13+ Leaf SV and SL have 6 kW OBCs but the S only has it if you buy the optional "charge package", otherwise it has a 3.3 kW OBC.

Off the top of my head, I don't know about the Smart ED.

For #2, the # of EV/PHEV coworkers my work isn't that small as the ratio is ~4:1 for plug-in vehicles vs. J1772 handles. However, the contention's not bad yet and we're (so far) very good at self-managing amongst ourselves w/o any formal requirements/guidelines. It's sorta related to our company's philosophy of freedom and responsibility.

 

But that could apply to any trip. By this logic, no one should buy a LEAF, because "would actually purchase with the possibly of getting stranded?"?
I'm not so sure a comparison to gasoline is appropriate, because the range of a gas car means that your range at any given time is several multiples of you actual commute distance, making even knowing what gas stations are along the route unnecessary.
If the LEAF driver has a 50-mile roundtrip, that sounds reasonable with a 73-mile EPA range, but let's say that they even went the extra step of ensuring there is a ChadeMo charger along the route. Well, again there is no real comparison to gasoline, because even that would involve a 30-minute detour, whereas there is no 'downtime' if the EV is sitting parked while @ work.

 

That is why EVs are very limited use public vehicles at this time...and why is it my employers responsibility to help me with my limited commute capabilities?

 

and to add, I could charge at work free with chargepoint (public parking) with a 52 mile round trip, but if they are out of order or being used......this is not a risk I am willing to take. I did seriously consider and shop EVs here in Texas, but the feasibility is not there for my commute which is nearly identical to the one in your example.

 

I can answer that. It is the employer's responsibility because it is in the national interest. We don't need to go into details....reduced oil imports, fewer respiratory ailments in urban areas, lower GHGs, etc.
We already give EV drivers $7500 (capped) Fed Tax Credit. It might be smarter to give employers tax credits for massive deployment of employer-based EV stations, because that would mean most prospective EV/PHEV buyers would buy less kwh than they otherwise would choose, meaning fewer tax credit $$ to dole out. So, more EVs/PHEVs deployed with less government spending to do it....what's not to like?

 

It is not the employer's responsibility. Would it make sense to give my tax money to businesses to help the few EV drivers that exist now, when I already pay more in gasoline taxes than this group? Possible changes to money disbursements by the Government always means we as a country pay more, not less. Don't get me wrong, if they would let me lease the Fit EV in Texas, I would already have one for limited use "only" around town however, it is my responsibility to get to and from work. That is one of the items I budget from the money they already pay me.

 

Diesel may share 1/2 of the pump but, the hoses are separate. Many times I, also had to put with my diesel truck waiting for a gasser to move forward so I could have access to the pump.

DBCassidy