Mac students pique, if not sell, seniors on ditching gas cars
University forum offers a primer on emerging electric and hybrid technology
Nadine Martin-Stout only bought her gas-fuelled car a few years ago, so she isn’t ready to make the switch to an electric or hybrid vehicle just yet.
But she said she’s open to the idea, which is why she chose to join more than 50 older drivers at a Mobility Matters forum hosted by McMaster University’s student EcoCAR team on Sunday that offered a primer on emerging car technology.
Martin-Stout, 64, said she’d likely start with a plug-in hybrid when she buys another car because it would avoid the lack of charging stations for EVs while lowering her carbon emissions to help combat climate change.
She said her interest in the option was piqued by a participant who told the session he’d only had to fill his plug-in hybrid’s gas tank three times since buying it last June.
“I feel like I want to be ready. I want to understand where we’re going,” Martin-Stout said. “I think the more we’re all interested in it, the more likely we’re going to get those charging stations, if governments see people are intrigued, interested and on board.”
Sister-in-law Sandy Stout said she’d also be interested in a plug-in hybrid, suggesting some who raised concerns about EV and hybrid cars’ batteries overlook that gas cars “are bad in their own way” and evolved over time, including by phasing out their fuel’s lead.
“It’s going to be baby steps, like everything,” said Stout, 65. “A 100 per cent solution is not going to be available in my lifetime but I’m OK with that. At least we’re moving forward.”
But Bill Ayre said he questions if Canada is putting too much faith in electric vehicles because “science doesn’t always pan out” and there may be more promising options, like hydrogen vehicles.
He said he’s looked into upgrading his gas Subaru to an electric model but can’t afford the extra $25,000 cost, apart from spending $2,000 to $3,000 on a home charger.
Ayre, who is “over 70,” said he also has issues with an EV’s range before it needs to be recharged and the time it can take to do so at public stations.
“I could live with, say, a 15-minute charge. But do I want to sit somewhere for a couple hours? I don’t think so,” he said. “There’s a lot of issues that need to be solved before it goes mainstream.”
EcoCAR team member Kyler Witvoet, who led a breakout discussion session, said the cost of EVs and hybrids will come down as the technology improves but acknowledged it was a big concern in his group. The third-year computer engineering student said he enjoyed hearing about issues he’d never considered — one woman complained that seatbelts never fit her — and the curiosity about EVs and hybrids.
“Having conversations like these and sharing ideas is what will help humanity as a whole to improve our systems, not only in automotive but also in other industries,” Witvoet said.
McMaster rehabilitation scientist Brenda Vrkljan, who works with seniors, said the event countered misinformation about EVs that is circulating on the web while allowing students to hear older drivers’ concerns, which will help them design better cars.
Some of those who attended are participating in an ongoing pilot road-skills study for drivers 65 and older that tracks their habits via a monitoring device inside their vehicles and will give them personalized feedback.
“It’s a small-scale study but it’s giving us lots of information about people’s driving,” Vrkljan said. “The thing that surprises is just how much people are driving. They’re busy,” she said. “Some are working but people are driving all kinds of places.”