Electric cars: Charge!

From BetterPlace.com

Electric cars have been around since the end of the 19th century, but their numbers have never been great.

Well, today General Motors announced its intention to be the first major automaker to design and manufacture electric car motors here in the U.S. Earlier the company had announced a plan to make lithium-ion batteries in Michigan.

This might well be considered the tipping point where the phenomenon of the electric car moves from the realm it's always existed in - a feasible "boutique" technology unsuited for everyday mass usage - to the realm of the practical, the doable, the everyday. It could be a few short years before electrics on the road are as common as hybrids - a wild-eyed rarity back at the beginning of this century.

Manufacturing is, of course, only part of the equation: For people to rely on electric cars, there have to be reliable ways to recharge, especially if one runs out of charge when not at home. That conundrum also reached a potential tipping point recently, as Better Place, the world's leading EV service provider, hasjust announced the raising of $350 Million to be devoted to the promulgation of electric-car charging stations. That's a pretty big vote of confidence for the mainstreaming of electric vehicles.

As this Treehugger post notes, future breakthroughs in battery technology could "reduce Better Place's advantage," but for now this is a big jump for both that company and the technology at large. However it plays out as electrics proliferate in the culture over time, it's worth noting their willingness to get out in front and, shall we say, lead the charge.

Comments

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0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 3:20 PM, 01/27/2010

mad, good point, there are a myriad of logistical problems. And I'd love to know if the "green" enthusiasts have fully assessed the environmental impacts and costs of manufacturing, servicing and disposing of those batteries. When you factor all that in, are these cars really all that "green?"

— pj katauskas

2 comments

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