Make sure the next vehicle you drive is sustainable. Go electric. Ditch fossil fuels and get an electric car or electric bike. You accelerate adaption. You drive sustainability.
Push your local council for more bike paths and electric buses that will carry bikes to help integrate bike riding with public transport. Put pressure on the grid to encourage investors. This is remarkable age. Renewable energy is now the cheapest source of energy in Australia.
The horse is here to stay, but the automobile
is only a novelty — a fad. [1903]
We at Permaculture Visions have been driving our electric car for 2 years now. The upsides are numerous. It would be disappointing to go back to stopping at smelly petrol stations. And having to drive harder like applying brakes for every time you need to slow down.
Downsides of the EV Drive
But there are still a couple of downsides. The biggest downside is accessing charging stations on busy days in busy areas. The only other downside is the quietness of the car. People are surprisingly slow to react. They see the car but don’t really believe it is moving because it is so quiet. So, future electric cars will have to be noisier.
Range Anxiety
Worry about making it to the next available charging station is a real concern. Especially on long journeys interstate. A few times now we have had to slow down to 80kms an hour, turn off the heating and radio and watch the dial slowly fall.
In truth, the next charging station may not be working. This is because charging stations break down easily, And they can flood. And parts are expensive. Each fast charging station costs about half a million dollars to install. In contrast, a user only pays about $7 per hour. Factor in the rarity of users in rural areas. So the pay back is slow. As a result, a number of charging stations have been left broken for months. Especially during the pandemic when the parts were slow to be imported.
So, we need to keep enough charge to drive to the following charging station in case the first option fails. Else prepare to stay overnight in a cabin or motel that will allow us to charge. Forget those 4 or 5 star motels, they won’t help unless they have a dedicated charging spot.
Thank you to the caring motels we have discovered. These small 3 star motels often have a humble little 240v power-point in the back of their basement or in the laundry. Overnight, this is sufficient to get us to the next charging station. We chose a small range EV because it was cheaper and we plan for misfortunes. We have become flexible travellers. So, when we get to the finish line we are pleasantly surprised.
Smart Towns Drive a Shining Future
Towns like Berry on the south coast of New South Wales are smart, they have a charging station beside the local bowling club, where the markets are held. And it is a quick stroll to their amazing new ROTARY play ground, boutique shops, excellent public toilets and lush picnic area at Avon Park.
Now, all we need to sort out is the design for EV parking and queueing, so that there is less stress and debate between users.