The electric vehicle charging challenges

Makers and sellers of EVs and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles have an economic incentive to teach themselves and the buying public how to find charging stations. Many makers and sellers are not doing that, thereby leaving money on the table.

Dealers could accelerate sales and establish new income streams by installing charging stations on their lots. Those stations could be used to demonstrate the charging process. Salespeople and customers could learn there. Just as dealers fill up a newly purchased gas-powered car, the dealer should provide the first charge-up for a newly purchased EV or PHEV. After the sale, the customer knows the locale of that one dealer charging station. Dealers can, for a fee, let their customers charge at those stations. Customers can use free apps to find other stations.

John Krout, Arlington

In the Dec. 27 front-page article “Shift to electrics drops into low gear,” Mark Z. Jacobson of Stanford University was quoted as stating “driving an electric vehicle saves the average driver about $20,000-$30,000 over 15 years in fuel cost savings alone.” That statement sounds reasonable if that average driver lives in a home where the electric vehicle can be parked within reach of an electric outlet and the cost of electricity is less than about 15 cents per kilowatt-hour. But many drivers do not have that capability.

Though there are free chargers, sponsored by local governments or commercial establishments as a benefit to their customers with the goal of a cleaner environment, many charge 25, 35 or more cents per kilowatt-hour. At these rates, the fuel savings will likely vanish compared with an efficient hybrid. The EV, however, still has the advantage of providing a great driving experience with reduced maintenance costs and is a benefit to the environment.

Robert F. Benson, Silver Spring