Plug-In Convention Draws 650 in San Jose

The soaring price of gasoline and diesel fuel have many
consumers demanding an alternative, and while E85 offers a slight break in cost
and current hybrids offer a more economical take on things, the automotive community
is still want more…or rather less fuel consumption.  The leading source of interest from the
electric powered vehicles is the idea of a vehicle that you can simply plug-in
when not in use, and while nothing of this sort is available in the American market,
General Motors plans to launch its Volt plug-in for the 2010 model year, and
they have also commented on the production of the Saturn Vue with plug-in
capabilities. 

The problem with plug-in vehicles does not so much lie in
the vehicle itself, but rather concerns about charging the system.  It is a nice idea to be able to come in and
plug-in your car and know that come morning, you’ll have enough power to get
around for the day but what about long car trips, or vacations where you may
not have the ability to hook up?  Even
without a mass produced plug-in vehicles, the city of San Jose has already made plans to address
that concern by installing charging stations around the city, attached to
utility poles.  There is the intention to
offer three to five of these stations in downtown San Jose, and the triangular power box will
be activated by a pass card that will be offered as a sign-up service by the
city.  This will effectively address the
issue of ‘where do I charge my car when Im not home’, but the bigger concern is
the amount of power needed to recharge vehicles as their popularity grows. 

The power grids around the United States are a delicate
balance, one that could be thrown off by a metropolis full of people getting to
work and plugging in their vehicles, but General Motors has been working with
power companies around the US and Canada to study the possible effects of mass
produced plug-in cars, as something like a blackout could essentially stop all
personal transportation, creating a sort of “fuel crisis” like the country has
never seen.  This is one of the key
sticking points throughout the evolution of the plug-in vehicles, but with the
rising gas prices causing consumers to demand more user-friendly alternatives,
it is only a matter of time before this technology is available to everyone
around the US, if not the world.