EV Drivers Getting “ICE’d” Out of Parking Spaces

As the New York Times pointed out this week, one of the many unanswered questions surrounding electric vehicles is how to assure that parking spaces with charging equipment will not be taken up by non-electric cars (“Pointing the Way to Where E.V. Drivers Can Plug In”, May 4, 2012) [1]. There is a lot of discussion regarding where stations should be located, but once the stations are constructed it is unclear how to deal with this potential problem. I was amused to learn that EV owners have begun to refer to this problem as getting “ICEd” – as in internal combustion engine vehicles taking their parking spaces.

I had an interesting experience with the “ICE” phenomenon recently while trying to find a parking space at the HEB on 41^st and Red River. I should point out first that I do not own an electric vehicle, so I was not purposely looking for a spot to charge up. Rather, I am interested in what the EV charging infrastructure will look like in the future so I tend to keep my eyes open for these types of things. Anyways, if I had been looking for a charging station I would have had absolutely no problem finding one at this particular HEB. This is not because they have dozens of charging spots in their parking lot, nor because of some sophisticated enforcement mechanism to keep “ICErs” out. Rather, the reason I would have had no problem finding a spot to charge my car at HEB was because the lone spot was located at the very back of the parking lot – literally the furthest away from the store that you could get without going onto an adjacent property (see map below) [2]. In other words, it is very unlikely that an EV owner would choose to park their car at this spot – which I measured to be ~500 feet from the front entrance – unless they were in desperate need of a charge.

 

 

I am willing to give Austin Energy (the owner of this charging station) the benefit of the doubt before completely letting loose on the ridiculousness of this location; perhaps this was the only feasible location to hook up to the grid, or maybe they wanted a location along a major arterial in order to increase awareness. These are both legitimate reasons for putting it where they did. In my opinion, however, the HEB charging station is doing a disservice to electric vehicles. Locating this station where they did sends a strong signal to EV owners that, “yes, we care about your needs, but not at the expense of our regular, ICE-driving customers”. If we are going to encourage the mass adoption of alternative fuel vehicles we need to ensure that consumers feel that their normal day-to-day behavior will not be seriously affected when they make the switch.

Good policy is one area where we can make EV drivers feel that they will not be left out to dry. A number of states have begun adopting laws prohibiting non-electric vehicles from using parking spots equipped with public charging stations. This is a good start, but there are many other logistical details that need to be ironed out, including how charging stations mesh with zoning laws, what types of on- and off-street signage are most effective, and how to make parking spaces accessible for all users [3]. While most research on EVs has been focused on technological issues such as their interaction with the grid or battery range, its is clear that the large scale adoption of EVs will bring with it many other issues that haven’t been addressed yet.

 

Sources:

[1] http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/06/automobiles/pointing-the-way-to-where-ev-drivers-can-plug-in.html?ref=science

[2] google maps

[3]http://www.commerce.wa.gov/DesktopModules/CTEDPublications/CTEDPublicationsView.aspxtabID=0&ItemID=8851&MId=863&wversion=Staging

 

How can cities plan for electric vehicles?

Unlike most of my classmates in Energy Technology and Policy this semester – most of whom are from the Engineering, Public Affairs or Business schools – I am fortunate to have the opportunity to join this course coming from the School of Architecture as a Community & Regional Planning student. With over half of the world’s population now living in urbanized areas, I believe it is important to have a good understanding of the ways in which cities consume energy and how we can plan for new energy technologies.

One area where I see a natural role for city planners to aid in the transition to a clean energy society is in the electrification of our transportation systems, especially with electric vehicle adoption likely to increase substantially over the next decade. (1)  From a planning perspective, the mass adoption of electric vehicles represents a classic “chicken and egg” dilemma. On one hand, it is believed that many consumers are unwilling to adopt EVs without a robust charging infrastructure. On the other hand, private stakeholders are hesitant to build the necessary charging infrastructure without the assurance of strong consumer demand.(2)

In order to spur demand for EVs in the short term, forward-thinking cities have begun to develop public charging station networks. The following three case studies outline some of citing criteria that cities are using to plan for their public charging networks based on their unique land use patterns, demographic makeup and built environment.

Denver, Colorado metropolitan area

In 2010 the City of Denver, Colorado partnered with the Clean Cities Coalition and other local governments to identify 100 potential sites for public charging stations as part of a five-year plan to promote EV use in the region. The first siting criterion used by the city was to only consider off-street parking lots and structures owned by the city in order to minimize acquisition costs and other complications that might arise with private partners. Once city-owned parking facilities were identified, they were narrowed down to focus on major venues where people park for long periods of time (performing arts complex, zoo, etc.). Next, the city worked with the Library and Parks and Recreation Department to identify facilities that 1.) had excess parking spaces, 2.) were near popular private attractions (shopping/dining districts), and 3.) were geographically distributed in as many neighborhoods as possible. (3)

 

Seattle / Central Puget Sound, Washington

According to the City of Seattle, Washington’s Office of Sustainability and Environment, promoting electric vehicles is “an important part of the City’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gases from cars and trucks on Seattle’s roads”. While its first priority is to promote alternative transportation choices (walking, bike and transit), the city is focusing on promoting EVs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at the street level. The consulting firm ECOtality partnered with the City of Seattle to release an infrastructure planning study outlining citing considerations for public charging stations in the Central Puget Sound area. The study determined that the most important citing consideration is that public charging stations be placed at locations where drivers will be parked from between 1-3 hours in order to get an appreciable recharge for their car. Such facilities include museums, government facilities, public parks and libraries. The plan stresses the importance of installing the charging stations near building entrances in order to maximize visibility. In addition to city-owned parking facilities, curbside charging offers a great potential for public charging stations. Through a grant from the Puget Sound Clean Cities Coalition the city is currently in the process of installing 50 public charging stations in the Seattle metro area. (4)

London, England

In 2009 the mayor of London released the EV Delivery Plan as part of a larger strategy to reduce carbon emissions in transport and improve the city’s air quality. The plan calls for the installation of 2,000 public access charging stations by 2015. High priority areas for charging stations identified in the plan include on-street parking bays in dense residential areas and in visible town centers. Special emphasis was placed on placing charging stations at or near public transit stations, including the London Underground rapid transit system and the Network Rail systems, in order to promote intermodal transportation and allow EV drivers to charge while parked for the day. As of December, 2011, 238 public charging points had been installed throughout the city. (5)

 

Conclusion

Cities that promote the early adoption of EVs stand to benefit by securing federal funds for infrastructure projects, building a “green” reputation, and attracting investment from EV automakers (6). Whatever the motivation may be, it is becoming increasingly clear that cities will play a role in the electric vehicle revolution. It is crucial for those of us in the planning field to develop an understanding of how energy technology and policy will affect the cities we serve, and what role the public sector should play in planning for the changes taking place in the energy sector.

References:

1 http://theenergycollective.com/tomkonrad/62665/predicting-electric-vehicle-adoption-curve

2 Vaughan, Adam. “The chicken and egg challenge facing electric cars”. The Guardian online edition. 20 July 2011. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/green-living-blog/2011/jul/20/chicken-eggelectric-carscharging [Nov. 2011

 3 Project Get Ready. “Citing Considerations for EVSE.” The Rocky Mountain Institute’s Project Get Ready website: http://projectgetready.com/resources/infrastructure/evse-siting-considertions%5BOct. 2011]

4 Electric Transportation Engineering Corporation. “Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Deployment Guidelines for the Central Puget Sound Area”. May 2010. Available online:http://www.theevproject.com/downloads/documents/Central%20Puget%20Sound%20%20EV%20Infrastructure%20Guidelines%20Ver%203-1.pdf [Oct. 2011]

 5 Mayor of London. “An Electric Vehicle Delivery Plan for London”. May 2009. http://legacy.london.gov.uk/mayor/publications/2009/docs/electric-vehicles-plan.pdf [Oct. 2010]

 6 Roland Berger Strategy Consultants. “PEV Readiness Study”. Fall 2010. Pg. 1