Charge!

So Portland is an electric car Mecca? We have them at motorway service stations, but the charging time means you end up paying exorbitant parking fees which some service stations charge. Also, I saw only two charging stations at one, which could lead to queuing. I'm not yet sold on the feasibility of electric cars at the present time.

It's a "green" mecca (also "sustainable," "organic," "natural," "ecological," etc., etc.), the heartland of what's been called "Ecotopia" (originally in Joel Garreu's _The Nine Nations of North America_, IIRC). So yes, I didn't find it surprising!

Electric cars are still not practical for long trips, at least till we get methanol-powered fuel cells or something similar, but they're perfectly adequate for 90% of road trips, including nearly all commuting. Just leave 'em plugged in all night... My son is currently looking at the Chevy Volt plug-in hybrid, and I'll be very interested to hear what he thinks.

That's ok if you have the facility to charge your vehicle overnight, but often it's difficult enough to find street parking outside your address, let alone hook up to a vulnerable charging point.

Ah. I'm implicitly assuming the existence of a garage, or at least a driveway! Not a problem in the 'burbs, or even in most neighborhoods around here, but yeah, if you can only park on the street-- In a few years I suspect we'll be seeing condominiums and apartment complexes that include a parking place also touting the fact that you can charge your car there! (And charging(!) a premium accordingly...)

Oh, and a correction: apparently "Ecotopia" was coined in an eco-fantasy novel in the mid 70s, and Garreau just appropriated the term.

We have seniors' sheltered accommodation over here where there are no facilities for storing or charging residents' electric invalid scooters. Also, many of them boast thirty to forty flats/bungalows with parking for twelve to fifteen cars only. Considering most of these complexes are open to fifty five year olds and upwards, this is clearly inadequate and an example of non joined up writing.

Is this a legacy issue, then, where the buildings were built before things like the necessity to charge scooters, or park vehicles, was routine? I know that can be a problem here particularly in old downtown areas, which long antedate the automobile. However, such issues should be addressed in new construction by building codes. My understanding is that a _new_ apartment complex, or similar structure, must have a parking space for each unit, plus a few extras for visitors, deliveries, and such.