Back to articles

Infrastructure

November 14, 2016 | Tim Kreukniet

In the recent National Geographic documentary Before the Flood, Leonardo DiCaprio stressed the human causes of climate change, and the role of government to set a framework to combat climate change.

One of the best parts of the film, is where he shows how President Obama flipped his stance on gay marriage back in 2012. This again, proves how much politicians are dependent on the people that elect them. Sometimes politicians lead, but often, they simply follow public perception...

I really liked the documentary. But what struck me was how much focus there is on top-down, governmental action. Last years’ Paris climate agreement is now ratified at COP22 in Marrakesh. Government action takes a long time and is only one piece of the puzzle. To limit climate change, we have to take action ourselves.

About 23% of all CO2 comes from the transportation sector today. This sector is also the fastest growing CO2 emitter world wide. Traveling in urban areas, unfortunately comes too often with many starts and stops. Being stuck in traffic jams isn't just bad for your mood, it's pretty bad for your health too. Even when you're inside your car. Perhaps the worst part is that it just takes too much time.

In average, people drive less than 40 miles a day, so why does still 50% of the people want a range of more than 190 miles before they'll buy an EV?

Earlier this year, Storm - a student team from the University of Technology in Eindhoven, The Netherlands - embarked on an 80-day journey around the world with a full-electric motorbike. When the students made their stop in New York, they were asked if range is a problem. “It just took me 90 minutes to drive 17 miles, I don't think range is the problem,” the biker promptly answered. And he’s right. Range isn’t the problem.

Recent MIT study proves that 87% of the US population will be able to cover their daily driving routine with a mid-market priced EV. Range anxiety is an emotional argument. Think of it as your relationship with the battery of your smartphone. There's never enough power. You can’t even last a day with it.

You probably have a designated spot to charge your phone at home and at your office. If we want to overcome range anxiety, we have to follow a similar approach. It’s is not about expanding the range of the vehicle, but making sure your car won’t run out of juice. The US government is strongly investing in a fast-charging corridors to provide this security. Only people and EV drivers will charge their car when it is standing still anyway.

My belief is that time is the only thing we don’t have in abundance. You're never going to get back the time it took you to read this blog. Neither will you get it back from the traffic jam this morning. And the same goes for the time you spent fast-charging your car. This is why it’s essential to be able to charge our cars at home and at work. So we can charge while we sleep, and charge while we work. There's no time to waste.

Your opinion matters. Share your thoughts on electric driving.

Please take this 5 minute survey. Stay tuned for the results.

Connect with us!

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook for all things exciting in sustainable tech and transportation.

For the EV-savvy amongst us, share your thoughts on the latest industry developments on LinkedIn.

No time to read? Tune in on Instagram and YouTube for a peek into the wondrous world of EVBox & e-mobility.