Bob's post http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/Availability-of-public-chargers-NOT-tp4693463p4693489.html said along the similar lines as I was thinking. Not everyone has access to any-level of charging, either at home or at work.
There are a large number of untapped EV buyers that do not know where the public (non-home/work) charging is located nor how much it costs. Thus, for all the news items I've posted stating more EVSE infrastructure is needed, the persons making the decisions of where the EVSE is to be installed are clueless of where is the 'right' location, how much it will cost, and the limitations of its use (signage, 4hr limit etc.). For all those that constantly crying charge 'at home' & 'off L1', lets ignore them. They don't have a need for public EVSE. Its the EV drivers that: -can't charge at home (apt dwellers, etc.), -are reactionary drivers (here, there, everywhere, using up the range half way through the day), -drivers that have pushed their range abilities (going out farther than usual, adverse range draining conditions, etc.), -are (weekend) road-warriors trying to live the car commercial's dream of driving way-way out to the middle of an-EVSE-desert, or -are EVnoobs, ignorant of anything EV, that mistakenly think there needs to be an EVSE (gas) station on each corner before they will even consider driving an EV. For all of the above, having a well planned out, contiguous route of L2-6kW, &L3(all flavors), available 24hr/day at an affordable use-cost, located at a place drivers want to go, or will feel safe, with something to do while they charge, public EVSE is useful and needed. But that isn't what EV drivers have. Sadly, market forces are used in the decision process by those who do not drive Electric. Many times there are large gaps between destinations, drivers arrive to find the EVSE is in use, or vandalized/broken/(its-dead-jim). There does not seem to be any over sight to make what public is available useful. Since moving to S. Central TX, my local utility has an EV program, see https://www.cpsenergy.com/en/about-us/programs-services/electric-vehicles.html for $60/yr of unlimited charging at their chargepoint stations the utility installed at popular grocery outlets (i.e. h.e.b.s), see https://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/news/2016/04/25/san-antonio-electric-vehicle-charging-station-list.html Its likely the utility's EV program subscribers receive a separate cps chargepoint rfi card to gain access. North East of here, Austin has an EV program as well. https://www.google.com/search?q=Austin+ev+charging+program Another approach ... There are many ice-gas stations that are closing. Wouldn't it be wise to bag one of these at each corner of town for public EVSE use? If the buyer selected one that did not require too much rework (dig up to remove leaking tanks, and decontaminate), there are other income that can cover initial costs (on-site quickie mart, fast-food or other shopping next door, etc.), until the public EVSE installed is known and used enough to generate its own income. Below is an (offt) news item that talks about the decline of ice-gas stations. Before I left the Silicon Valley area, ice-gas stations on the SF peninsula were becoming rarer. They just did not pull in enough cash flow for the owners' liking (gone are the days of ez-oil money). Many of those former ice-stations were easily turned into another money making profitable businesses as they were located in a good/busy spot. Ahh, if only the powers that be had the wisdom, forethought, and chutzpah to do public EVSE right ... :sigh: ... - https://www.theday.com/article/20190504/NWS05/190509730 Where are all the Mystic gas stations going? May 04. 2019 David Collins You might think that the evolution of electric cars is already further along in Mystic than in other places, given the way gas stations in town have been closing. One closed station, on Broadway Avenue, has already been made into a stylish wine bar, MBAR, where you can sip and nibble in the old garage bays of the Art Deco-style building. The station across from that one is now shuttered. The noisy ding dings on that corner of Mystic, as cars passed over the rubber strips at the entrances to what were, until not that long ago, full service stations, with attendants who would pump the gas for you, have gone quiet. The more modern convenience store gas station across Broadway, opposite the train station, is not pumping gas these days, either, one of three stations that have been under construction in recent weeks, with their underground tanks being replaced. For a short period, there were no working pumps anywhere in downtown Mystic. This seemed like an odd coincidence, to me, that three stations within a mile or two of one another, chose to get new tanks at the same time. It turns out there are a lot of tank replacements going on across the state right now, according to Lori Saliby, a supervising environmental analyst at the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection who is in charge of underground tank regulation enforcement. There's a simple explanation, she said, since the state imposed new regulations on the underground tanks a little over 30 years ago. The deadline for compliance was 1989, and so many of the state's tanks were replaced soon before then, making them the same age. Since the allowed lifetime of the tanks is 30 years, it's suddenly tank replacement time all over the state. This isn't creating a regulatory hardship, Saliby said, since the state is regularly inspecting the tanks. Overseeing all the replacements has not created that much additional inspection work, she said. Meanwhile, like the two in Mystic that have shut down their pumps altogether, other stations around the state also are going out of business, since the profit margins on gas are low. The ones that remain generally have other parts of their business, like retail sales driven by the visits to the pumps, that sustain them. The percentage of stations closing for good still seems higher in Mystic. In the last 10 years, Saliby said, the number of stations with active underground tanks in the state has fallen from about 2,500 to about 2,100, a decline of more than 15 percent. On the Stonington side of Mystic, two of five stations in the immediate vicinity of downtown have closed recently. There is nowhere left where someone pumps your gas and squeegees your window. Certainly much of this is the trend toward bigger stations that sell milk, pizza and burgers and won't change your oil or rotate your tires. Meanwhile, wine bars in lieu of pumps and cars that run without burning fossil fuels is not a bad future for Mystic to lead the way on. This is the opinion of David Collins. [© theday.com] ... http://www.gassigns.org/mystik.htm Mystik Gas Station Photos [images http://www.gassigns.org/bigemblm/droz-mystik.jpg Mystik, a Florida brand for stations without a brand. Rainbow Food Stores also use this now. Location: Plant City, FL. Taken April, 2004 by Robert Droz. http://www.gassigns.org/bigemblm/droz-mystiksign.jpg Another Mystik from Robert Droz. Taken around March, 2005. http://www.gassigns.org/bigemblm/Aldred-Mystik-McAlester_OK-200511.jpg A Mystik station on US Business Route 69 in McAlester, OK. Taken Nov 2005 by David Aldred. A former Citgo. David mentions that Mystik is Citgo's off-brand. Also, this McAlester station is no longer branded Mystik. ] ... https://www.google.com/search?q=disappearing+gas+stations Eerie Towns, Disappearing Diners, and Creepy Gas Stations https://www.google.com/search?q=why+are+so+many+gas+stations+closing ... https://www.engadget.com/2017/06/27/the-rise-of-electric-car-will-kill-the-gas-station/ Will gas stations disappear? Gas stations are a lifeline. ... It's going to be a long while before the handy service station goes away, but its days are numbered -- because electric cars are going to change everything. One of the biggest complaints you hear about electric vehicles is that you can't refuel them the same way as a gas car.Jun 27, 2017 The rise of electric cars will kill the gas station ... ... https://patch.com/florida/largo/city-largo-installs-7-free-electric-charging-stations City Of Largo Installs 7 Free Electric Charging Stations May 4, 2019 In partnership with Duke Energy, the City of Largo has installed seven electric vehicle charging stations across the community ... ... https://www.google.com/search?q=synchronized+traffic+lights - + https://www.autonews.com/marketing/toyota-hybrids-become-tougher-sell For Toyota, hybrids become a tougher sell May 05, 2019 There's no doubt: Tesla's electric vehicles are the talk of the industry ... Hybrids ... just aren't perceived to be as cool or cutting-edge as EVs ... "EVs are getting all this coverage and the marketing ... 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