Electric vehicles: Charged for Yuma’s future
Plug In Around Arizona tour makes stop in town
When Jerry Asher first got an electric vehicle, he had to go around begging businesses to let him plug in to charge up his 2011 Nissan Leaf when traveling. He could usually persuade a restaurant to let him plug in while he dined or a hotel while he stayed overnight.
Nowadays he can usually find a public charging station wherever he is. In Yuma there are at least
four public EV stations: Yuma City Hall, Yuma Landing Bar and Grill, Garden Oasis RV Park and Pivot Point Conference Center at the Hilton Garden Inn.
And if the Tucson resident is in a familiar area, he can easily find one using the PlugShare app on his smartphone.
However, Asher feels that some communities might not be ready for what he feels is the wave of the future: an influx of electric cars hitting the road. Some communities — like Yuma — don’t have enough charging stations to handle the number of EVs that will be looking for charging stations.
“You want to be ready for the traffic that’s coming,” Asher said.
With the goal of raising awareness among local businesses and encouraging more of them to offer charging to EV customers, the sixth annual Plug In Around Arizona tour stopped in Yuma on Monday. The Yuma County Chamber of Commerce hosted the event.
The interactive workshop was open to the general public. Asher and his team from the Tucson Electric Vehicle Association, or TEVA, a chapter of the nationwide and nonprofit Electric Auto Association, shared information on “Electric Vehicles & Charging Infrastructure” at the Pivot Point Conference Center, one of the locations which has eight Tesla superchargers. Asher had his own 2017 Tesla X hooked up to a charging station while he conducted the workshop and afterward demonstrated the vehicle to attendees.
The workshop addressed how charging stations can benefit local businesses, how to use the free PlugShare app and the future of electric vehicles.
TEVA member Dave Gebert said the 2018 Nissan Leaf can go 155 miles between charges and businesses can use complimentary charging stations to attract EV owners, a perk much like offering free coffee.
Most people, like Steve Parkhurst, mostly charge at home or work, “but every once in a while we need to charge away from home,” he said.
In response to a question from John Courtis, the chamber’s executive director, the team noted that a wall charger costs from $500 to $700 and a pedestal charger is about $1,500. Electrical wiring costs about $3 a foot, averaging about $240.
Deputy Mayor Gary Knight was among those in attendance. “I wanted to find out what the city can do to encourage more charging stations so we can be more EV friendly, so electric vehicle owners can have a place to stop to eat, shop and spend time while charging,” he said.
“It takes two to three hours to charge. It’s an excellent opportunity for businesses in Yuma, in particular restaurants, bars and retail businesses, because people can shop and eat while their car charges,” Knight added.
Frank and Carol Menor, winter visitors from Washington, went to the event to learn more about electric vehicles. “I think it’s the coming thing. EV cars will be in by 2030. We don’t know anything about it. We wanted to educate ourselves. It’s going to happen,” Carol said.
This kind of education is needed, according to a recent survey of 2,500 people by Altman Vilandrie & Co., which found that 60 percent of Americans are unaware that electric cars exist, as reported by Current EVents magazine.
However, members of the TEVA team believe this will change quickly as consumer demand for EVs goes up and prices go down. Asher noted that his 2011 Nissan Leaf cost him $40,000 because it came from Japan. Now the car is being built in Tennessee and retails at about $30,000.
Competition is also driving prices down as more car makers build electric vehicles. A Plug In America sheet shows base prices ranging from $22,995 for a 2017 Mitsubishi iMiev to $95,650 for a 2017 Mercedes S550e.
And at least for now, a $7,500 federal tax credit is available, but it will probably be eliminated soon. Dealers usually apply the incentive to the price of the car, reducing the monthly payments.
Gebert is leasing a Nissan Leaf, not his first choice but the lease was too good to pass, he said. With a $2,400 down payment, his monthly payment is $269.
As a citizen, Knight also expressed concern that while EVs are supposed to be environmentally friendly, they’re creating another kind of waste in discarded batteries. The TEVA team replied that most batteries can be recycled.
Knight also expressed concerns that EVs owners aren’t paying for their share of taxes used to fix roads — a tax paid at gasoline pumps -— although they contribute to the wear and tear of roads.
Gebert pointed out that EV owners pay sales taxes, but Knight noted that sales taxes don’t go to fix roads. Gebert also noted that in a survey, most club members said they are willing to pay a fee for roads but legislators are running up against the “no new taxes” people.
Attendees also asked where they could get an electric car serviced (the dealership will service it) and the maintenance they require. Asher said that his 2011 Nissan Leaf, at 60,000 miles, has had no maintenance issues come up. He did have to replace the battery because of the heat, which cost him $5,000. And, he pointed out, he doesn’t have the $8,000, $10,000 worth of moving parts that a traditional combustion engine has.
Asked about the life expectancy of a battery, the TEVA team noted that most vehicles come with an eight-year, 100,000-mile warranty and that the batteries don’t require maintenance.
The public-private partnership Plugin All Around Arizona statewide campaign is traveling to all 15 counties in Arizona, the sixth time it tours the whole state. For more information, call Asher at (520) 429-2833.