Now that Chevrolet has been selling Bolt EVs in Texas for almost a year now, I’ve seen some amazing distances achieved on a single charge. This got me to thinking about charging infrastructure again. In an earlier post, written over a month before my dealership received their first Bolt EV, I wasn’t sure if 238 miles of range was a major advantage. My Bolt EV customers seem to be proving me wrong!
I have had clients pick up their fully-charged Bolt EV and, on their very first day of ownership, have driven from the DFW area to Austin (210 miles), Katy (278 miles), Houston (261 miles), Merkel (190 miles) and Oklahoma City (194 miles). Most did this on the original charge and a couple drivers stopped for a quick level 2 charge, while stopping for a meal. This was a real eye-opener for me!
This new generation of EVs can become much more than I thought, with a change to charging infrastructure plans. Currently, (sorry for the pun) plans in Texas are for DC fast charging to be deployed in large population centers. Don’t get me wrong, DCFC is needed in large cities to open up an entirely new market: drivers who live in multi-family properties that do not have garages. However, we need to also consider small towns between major population centers, to enable much longer distance travel than is currently thought feasible (or practical).
As part of this, we need small towns to see the deployment as an opportunity. In the western U.S., these intra-city distances can be quite large. For instance, the distance from San Antonio, Texas to El Paso (still in Texas) is 552 miles! Imagine the opportunity for the small towns along this drive: cross-country EV drivers would, just like gasoline-powered vehicle drivers, have to stop to refuel.
Many small towns have businesses that cropped up next to their gas stations, situated along the interstate highway. Those businesses are definitely helped by the increased traffic from the gas station’s patrons. That’s why I am aware of Sam’s Restaurant in Fairfield, Woody’s Smokehouse in Centerville and the Little Czech Bakery in West. I love all these spots, but would have never discovered them, had it not been for the need to stop for gas (gasoline, not the other kind).
I discovered these places and spent money there because of their proximity to the interstate and the gas station. I was only at the gas station for a few minutes, but that one stop generated more revenue than just my gas purchase.
Now, consider an EV driver. They’re going to stop for at least 30 minutes (to add a safety margin to their remaining range) or possibly a couple hours, to fill an almost depleted battery pack. This will happen if, and only if, the town has a DC fast charger.
Imagine a future (hopefully not too far off) where an EV driver stops at the charging station, has a meal, and then looks for something else to fill their idle time. What if there was a video playing, in an air-conditioned/heated lounge area, that touted diversions in the area (a state park, a river for tubing, historical sites)? Obviously a Starbucks would probably pop up, in short order!
How about adding a small bus service to take visitors to your town’s quaint little shops? What if you built a water park and the EV drivers could spend a couple hours drifting along, instead of sitting in their car, sleeping? How about a cinema? A massage parlor (a real one) to massage away all the aches and pains of a long road trip? What if you built a movie streaming store, that could charge to stream currently-running movies to their vehicle’s infotainment system (via Apple CarPlay or Android Auto apps yet to be developed), so the movie could start when the visitor wanted it to, instead of having to wait for the next showtime?
This is a time of opportunity for small towns that have slowly watched their population dwindle, while residents moved away to the big city for the opportunities available there. I’m no visionary, but even I can see the opportunities. I also know there’s someone out there, with more vision than myself, who may become wealthy, taking this opportunity and running with it.
Hey, small town mayors: Is that person already living in your small town?
Maybe Frank’s Restaurant, in Schulenburg, would still be there, if it had made it into the new EV future…
I sure miss their baked frito chili…
Great Ideas, there’s a wave to replace the gas station and it’s overpriced conveniences.
Yes we can start turning gas stations into charging stops and WiFi connection
This article is right on
I hope lots of small towns see the light here
Buzz, you are absolutely right. Kansas is getting 6-8 charging stations along I70 and I35 through Electrify America. That will create opportunities for smaller businesses to build charging depots on the state highways that would be within driving distance of those stations. That would allow someone to fast charge for a half hour, take a detour off the route, charge while touring, then get back on the route. I have also thought this as Concordia Kansas will be 50 miles north of the I70 charging station in Salina, Ks. The community college I work at has a Renewable Energy Technology Program and we have 2 wind turbines and soon to have a few hundred kilowatts of solar. We would be a green attraction for sure. The downtown area is just begging for charging stations to bring people in. Lots to do here, just need the chargers.