[aftbit]

This is a very bold bet. It would not work in the US, at least without some kind of revolution in public transit. There are plenty of places where not owning a car means you basically cannot have a job or a social life, and many of these are far from any existing EV stations.

It will take a long time to replicate the network of petrol stations that covers basically all US roads. Also, modern EV cars are still an order of magnitude slower to recharge than gasoline cars are to refill. It's not as easy to increase your range in an EV as it is to carry some extra petrol if you're on a long trip into the brush.

Fortunately, I don't see this even being seriously proposed in the US until long after these problems are solved.

[toomuchtodo]

> It will take a long time to replicate the network of petrol stations that covers basically all US roads.

Every home is a slow charger. Tesla has Superchargers covering most of the first world.

> Also, modern EV cars are still an order of magnitude slower to recharge than gasoline cars are to refill.

Vehicles sit idle ~95% of the time. Average US round trip commute is ~45 miles/day. Plenty of charge time.

> Fortunately, I don't see this even being seriously proposed in the US until long after these problems are solved.

Tesla is making an announcement about their autonomous vehicle program near the end of the year.

Change is going to happen slowly, and then all of a sudden.

[CalRobert]

"Every home is a slow charger. Tesla has Superchargers covering most of the first world."

I agree with your post, BUT remember that we apartment-dwellers are often forgotten. Few landlords are cool with snaking an extension cable to your car. My own apartment has no parking at all (a good thing, in my view, since parking encourages auto reliance), so I've parked on the street since I moved here. Incidentally, I sold my car earlier this afternoon, and am moving to a city where living car-free is practical.

[toomuchtodo]

Make it mandatory property managers support EV charging stations, as California has done.

http://www.propertymanager.com/2015/08/electric-vehicle-char...

For apartments with no parking, I agree there is little solution to that other than not owning a vehicle.

[aftbit]

"For residential leases signed, renewed or extended on or after July 1, 2015, landlords are required to approve a tenant’s written request to install an electric vehicle charging station at the tenant’s parking space if the tenant enters into a written agreement which includes requirements regarding the installation, use, maintenance and removal of the charging station, requires the tenant pay for all modifications, and requires the tenant to maintain a $1,000,000 general liability insurance policy."

Seems only applicable to people who intend to rent for many many years. If you move, you might need to pay to tear out your EV charging station.

[CalRobert]

A good way to address this would be to unbundle housing from parking. I'd prefer to rent a spot in a neighborhood parking garage, separate from my apartment, where I could charge a vehicle. That would be a huge shift in US building policy, though.

[toomuchtodo]

Fingers crossed electric self-driving cars negate any need for this sort of complexity in the future.

[Skinney]

Oslo is aiming at zero-emission public transit by 2020. The goal is to have a mix of hydrogen busses (we already have one driving around) and EV busses. The buss stops will be charged with an automated charger which is good enough to (in worst case) bring the buss to the next stop. For longer trips, hydrogen busses are used.