8 minutes ago, lol-lol said:

So I can charge at home, many of my offices and clients have EV charging stations, free of charge, then drive home again.

 

Most people will charge at home or at work and only grab a 10, 15, 20 minute charge on the go, whilst they have their comfort break, grab a coffee or a McDonalds McMuffin, wireless charging would be nice in the Grill Bay pickup.

I took some visitors out yesterday for a tour round some of the scenic places on Exmoor, it was a hot day so the air-con was on and there were lots of steep hills so the actual range of an EV would have been substantially less than the published figure, maybe as little as half?

 

We covered 200 miles and how many charging points(or even outdoor mains sockets) did we see? - zero, zilch, nadda , none. So charging an EV was not an option.

 

The availability of EV charging is simply no where near sufficient at present and in rural areas (where range anxiety is likely to be greatest) will lag several years behind cities, combine that with the limited actual (not published) range and EVs are simply not a viable option at present.

 

Yes battery specific capacity (Wh/kg) is improving at an increasing rate (maybe 10% per decade?) but it's still not sufficient to make EVs usable for most of the population in the 2040 timeframe proposed by the Government.

 

Fuel poverty in rural areas is currently mainly about heating the home and cooking, but unless some realism is introduced will extend into inability to get to shops, etc. (remember in many rural areas there are no bus services as they are financially not viable so personal transport is a must and in hilly areas cycling isn't an option for any other than the very fit).

 

EVs will happen and I welcome that, but the whole system of how they work and are used has to be in place before there is any compulsion.

13 hours ago, logiclee said:

 

Next week I'll be doing around 1200 miles through Lincolnshire and then a weekend in the Peak District.

 

I'll be lucky to find a socket to charge my phone.

 

 

 

Lots of charge points in Lincoln, Boston, Skegness etc

 

same for Kendal, Windemere and ever the farside ie Whitehaven

 

https://www.zap-map.com/live/

 

2 minutes ago, lol-lol said:

 

Lots of charge points in Lincoln, Boston, Skegness etc

 

same for Kendal, Windemere and ever the farside ie Whitehaven

 

https://www.zap-map.com/live/

 

 

Great, not going anywhere near there.  

 

 

1 hour ago, SWBoy said:

I took some visitors out yesterday for a tour round some of the scenic places on Exmoor, it was a hot day so the air-con was on and there were lots of steep hills so the actual range of an EV would have been substantially less than the published figure, maybe as little as half?   We covered 200 miles and how many charging points(or even outdoor mains sockets) did we see? - zero, zilch, nadda , none. So charging an EV was not an option.  The availability of EV charging is simply no where near sufficient at present and in rural areas (where range anxiety is likely to be greatest) will lag several years behind cities, combine that with the limited actual (not published) range and EVs are simply not a viable option at present.

Yes battery specific capacity (Wh/kg) is improving at an increasing rate (maybe 10% per decade?) but it's still not sufficient to make EVs usable for most of the population in the 2040 timeframe proposed by the Government.

Fuel poverty in rural areas is currently mainly about heating the home and cooking, but unless some realism is introduced will extend into inability to get to shops, etc. (remember in many rural areas there are no bus services as they are financially not viable so personal transport is a must and in hilly areas cycling isn't an option for any other than the very fit).

EVs will happen and I welcome that, but the whole system of how they work and are used has to be in place before there is any compulsion.

 

Exmoor, charge points at Infacombe, Linton, Minehead. The one at Exford is down at the moment according to the ZAP map.   Can always take a granny cable to top up at the a 3 point plug at the cottage.

 

Price,/capacity is improving at around 10% a year not decade.  Current reckoning is that EVs will be cheaper to run, all aspect considered within 3 to 4 years hence me hoping 1.4 TSI will be my last ICE car.

 

Government and Councils have already killed off much of rural transportation.  Maybe a rental cars bay at the village hall so one can collect, use and drop back.  No issue with pollution in much of the countryside so this is where all the diesels banned from the cities can end up.    

1 hour ago, logiclee said:

 

The majority of UK drivers do not have off street parking.

 

Then use an adapted lamppost as above  ^^^^^^^^^^.   

 

Space in front of the lamppost reserved for EVs so double win.   

 

2 minutes ago, lol-lol said:

 

  Can always take a granny cable to top up at the a 3 point plug at the cottage.

 

 

 

As long as the cottage has off street parking.

 

You can't run an extension lead across the pavement to a car parked on the road. Which is the single main issue for most UK owners.

 

1 minute ago, lol-lol said:

 

Then use an adapted lamppost as above  ^^^^^^^^^^.   

 

Space in front of the lamppost reserved for EVs so double win.   

 

 

I have never seen one outside a major city.

 

We have lamposts one for every 6 houses, so not a long term viable solution seeing as most houses have at least two cars.

3 minutes ago, logiclee said:

 

As long as the cottage has off street parking.

 

You can't run an extension lead across the pavement to a car parked on the road. Which is the single main issue for most UK owners.

 

 

Hence the lamppost strategy.     

 

 

4 minutes ago, logiclee said:

 

I have never seen one outside a major city.

 

We have lamposts one for every 6 houses, so not a long term viable solution seeing as most houses have at least two cars.

 

Like many EV charge stations there could be two outlets per lamp post.  Would everyone charge there car every night?  If one is only doing a ten, twenty mile commute once a week is probably enough.

T

1 minute ago, lol-lol said:

 

Hence the lamppost strategy.     

 

 

 

 

Great for London.

 

For most rural villages and towns throughout the UK there are no plans.  Street lighting was installed decades ago on small diameter cables with 16A and 25Amp supplies. They are supplied from small capacity transformers or off district switchboards all of which will need upgrading.

I've seen the studies and the costs and there's nothing in the pipline outside of the big cities. 

And even if every street lamp on every housing estate has a charging point that is still not enough to cope with everyone switching to EV, not by a long way.

1 hour ago, lol-lol said:

 

Lots of charge points in Lincoln, Boston, Skegness etc

 

same for Kendal, Windemere and ever the farside ie Whitehaven

 

https://www.zap-map.com/live/

 

 

As I've already said I will probably buy  a Citigo E. I'm lucky to have off street parking for four cars. 

 

But a long way off being able to run only EV vehicles.

 

ZAP Map shows how far we still have to go for me next week. Not a single charging point and that's about 700 square miles

 

 

It's chicken and egg again. People in rural areas will not invest in EV without charging points and companies will not investing in charging points in rural areas because of the lack of EV's.

Edited 24 June, 20187 yr by logiclee

4 hours ago, lol-lol said:

Exmoor, charge points at Ilfracombe, Linton, Minehead.

Didn't go near any of those towns we stayed on the Moor visiting the beauty spots, so wouldn't have been any help at all - this is the problem charge points are not YET in sufficient places in rural areas (nor in many towns either).

3 hours ago, logiclee said:

It's chicken and egg again. People in rural areas will not invest in EV without charging points and companies will not investing in charging points in rural areas because of the lack of EV's.

That's so true - which is why it needs Government (national, regional and local) to take the initiative because business won't.

Edited 24 June, 20187 yr by SWBoy

Hundreds of millions of pounds of windfarms investments withing 100 square miles of this charger, unhappy people about windfarms and yet some income from those windfarms is not going back to the community in the form of a EV Charger infrastructure.

(They will say that Taxes go to the Treasury, well get that cash splashed.)

£800 being a major issue it seems.

Moray Council & also Lord Nicol Stephen that heads so many of the Wind Farm companies should be ashamed & get his hand in his pocket.  3 days House of Lords Expenses money will do it.

http://bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-44561039 

Convoy chaos will be repeated on the A96 after a wind farm firm ordered the wrong parts _ Press and Journal.mhtml

Peer's wind farm empire _ UK _ News _ Express.co.uk.mhtml

£250m Stonehaven windfarm project approved _ Press and Journal.mhtml

Energy Voice _ Lord Stephen's firm secures funding for Aberdeenshire wind farm - News for the Oil and Gas Sector.mhtml

Edited 24 June, 20187 yr by Offski

9 hours ago, lol-lol said:

 

Like many EV charge stations there could be two outlets per lamp post.  Would everyone charge there car every night?  If one is only doing a ten, twenty mile commute once a week is probably enough.

 

Lamp posts tend to be on the opposite side of the pavement to the kerbside. Is the suggestion laying your charger cable over the pavement from the lamp post to the car?  

Edited 24 June, 20187 yr by Guest

On 23/06/2018 at 10:50, DavidY said:

 

Not for my car - the DSG starts in whatever I left it in - usually Eco mode.

Ditto.

21 hours ago, lol-lol said:

Like many EV charge stations there could be two outlets per lamp post.  Would everyone charge there car every night?  If one is only doing a ten, twenty mile commute once a week is probably enough.

 

I think for the beginning everyone will always charge the EV car when they can until the range & reliability is proven for the owner.

If you get a call that you need to go somewhere urgently, EV has a huge disadvantage over fuelled cars because it takes hours rather than seconds to recharge your range by 1000km.

 

This kind of strategy also assumes that you can park outside your house next to a lamp post, its not working for people that live in flats or dont have parking where they live.

 

The infrastructure for EV is 10-years away at least. - power stations, power lines or distributed power networks/batteries at local homes will take décades to roll out & as shown by internet or mobile phone access these systems wont reach rural areas unless its provided by the government as there is no money in it for other companies.