If you prefer to skip to the outcome, only four out of the ten rapid charging sites were working, but it is worth watching as an insight into EV frustrations.
Wednesday, 1 February 2023
EV Frustration
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4 comments:
People buying EVs are boasting how fashionable they are, and are pocketing a bloody great subsidy from me to let them do so. I therefore clap when they discover they're a silly idea.
I was sitting in our car in a carpark the other day. There were two chargers that claimed to be reserved for taxis. One was unoccupied; the other was charging a car that gave no evidence at all of being a taxi. Mind you, the two bays for disabled drivers were occupied by two cars whose drivers had likewise given no external sign of being disabled.
It was a lovely morning; I saw my first convertible of the year with its lid down.
Our local green harpy wants everyone to own a green car.
Not for us, I protested, we live in a tied house and there's no way the owners would pay for a charging point; and besides we park on the road outside, so how do we get a cable to the car without obstructing the footpath.
No problem, she said. I'm already lobbying the parish council (i.e. the people who look after footpaths and rubbish bins) for a set of charging points outside the village hall!
So, If she's successful, and if I can nab one of the points and they don't get vandalised by local bored youths, and I don't mind walking half a mile in the rain with all my shopping, and I don't mind leaving the car (and probably my glasses and gloves and the other stuff that fills cars) a couple of streets away, and if the point doesn't break down, then this woman might have done me a real favour!
Apart from useless, broken down EV charge points (of which there are orders of magnitude too few already), consider the appalling state of roads in the country.
The few icy days we had recently revealed that all the road surfaces which had been poorly 'repaired' before, usually with what's called 'top dressing' (a thin layer on top of damaged surfaces, which breaks down as soon as it's icy), had potholes and cracks liable to damage cars.
EVs are much heavier than ICE cars because of the weight of the battery, so these coal-fired monsters are exacerbating the surface damage caused by lorries and the lack of proper maintenance.
County Councils are responsible for maintaining roads and other infrastructure, but despite seizing more and more taxes, have seemingly reduced their efforts.
I now avoid driving at night when possible, as I've already had to replace a tyre due to pothole damage. And if it's been raining and it's dark as well - is it a puddle or a bloody great big hole? - good luck at any speed above walking pace!
dearieme - our local council installed an array of charging points in a town centre car park. We walk past it regularly and have only ever seen one electric car using a charging point.
We had a drive with the lid down this morning. Quite cloudy, but enjoyable.
Sam - the level of belief can be weird. An electric car might work for some, but they are expensive and clearly won't work well for people without home charging and possibly not even then. All obvious problems without going into anything else, so where does the enthusiasm come from?
Ed - we've had the night driving pothole problem. I wouldn't do it on unlit roads I don't know. I've never seen roads in such a poor state and still HS2 grinds on.
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